Chetan Anand (director)
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Chetan Anand (3 January 1921 – 6 July 1997) was a
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
film producer, screenwriter and director from India, whose debut film, ''
Neecha Nagar ''Neecha Nagar'' () is a 1946 Indian Hindi-language film, directed by Chetan Anand, written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Hayatullah Ansari, and produced by Rashid Anwar and A.Halim. It was a pioneering effort in social realism in Indian cinema a ...
'', was awarded the Grand Prix Prize (Now Golden Palm) at the first ever
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
in 1946. Later he co-founded
Navketan Films Navketan Films was a film production house based in Mumbai, India. Started in 1949 by actor-director and producer Dev Anand and his elder brother Chetan Anand, whose debut film, ''Neecha Nagar'', received the Palme d'Or (Best Film) award, at the ...
with his younger brother
Dev Anand Dharamdev Pishorimal Anand (26 September 1923 – 3 December 2011), better known as Dev Anand, was an Indian actor, writer, director and producer known for his work in Hindi cinema, through a career that spanned over six decades. He was ...
in 1949.


Biography


Early life

Anand was born on 3 January 1921, in
Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...
,
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
, to well-to-do advocate Pishori Lal Anand. He went to
Gurukul Kangri Vishwavidyalaya Gurukula Kangri ( deemed to be university) ('गुरुकुल कांगड़ी समविश्वविद्यालय') is a government-funded deemed to be university u/s 3 of the UGC act 1956 located in Haridwar, Uttarakhand ...
to study Hindu scriptures and graduated in English from
Government College Lahore The Government College University, Lahore (colloquially known as GCU), is a public research university located in Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. Opened as Government College, Lahore, in 1864, it became a university in 2002. Overview In 1864, Gov ...
. He remained a member of
Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
in the 1930s, subsequently worked for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
and taught at the
Doon School The Doon School (informally Doon School or Doon) is a selective all-boys boarding school in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India, which was established in 1935. It was envisioned by Satish Ranjan Das, a lawyer from Calcutta, who prevised a school mode ...
,
Dehradun Dehradun () is the capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and is governed by the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, with the Uttarakhand Legislative As ...
for a while, before coming down to Bombay to sell a film script.


Career

In the early 1940s, while he was teaching History, he wrote a film script on king
Ashoka Ashoka (, ; also ''Asoka''; 304 – 232 BCE), popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire of Indian subcontinent during to 232 BCE. His empire covered a large part of the Indian subcontinent, ...
, which he went on to show to director
Phani Majumdar Phani Majumdar was a pioneering Indian film director, who worked in Hindi cinema, most known for his film '' Street Singer'' (1938) starring K.L. Saigal noted for its song, ''Babul Mora Naihar Chhooto Jaye'', Meena Kumari classic ''Aarti'' (19 ...
in
Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
. Anand failed to qualify for the
Indian Civil Service The Indian Civil Service (ICS), officially known as the Imperial Civil Service, was the higher civil service of the British Empire in India during British rule in the period between 1858 and 1947. Its members ruled over more than 300 million ...
(ICS) exams in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. As luck would have it, Phani Majumdar cast him as a lead in his
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
film, ''Rajkumar'', released in 1944. He also became associated with
Indian People's Theatre Association Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) is the oldest association of theatre-artists in India. IPTA was formed in 1943 during the British rule in India, and promoted themes related to the Indian freedom struggle. Its goal was to bring cultur ...
( IPTA) in Bombay present day Mumbai. He soon took to film direction with the well-acclaimed movie ''
Neecha Nagar ''Neecha Nagar'' () is a 1946 Indian Hindi-language film, directed by Chetan Anand, written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Hayatullah Ansari, and produced by Rashid Anwar and A.Halim. It was a pioneering effort in social realism in Indian cinema a ...
'' which won the
Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...
(Best Film) award (then known as 'Grand Prix') at the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
in 1946. It was the debut film for
Kamini Kaushal Kamini Kaushal (born as Uma Kashyap, 24 February 1927) is an Indian actress who worked in Hindi films and television. She is noted for her roles in films such as ''Neecha Nagar'' (1946), which won the 1946 Palme d'Or (Golden Palm) at Cannes Fil ...
and became the first Indian film to gain international recognition and was the debut of
Pandit Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known export of North Ind ...
. By the early 1950s, he and his younger brother
Dev Anand Dharamdev Pishorimal Anand (26 September 1923 – 3 December 2011), better known as Dev Anand, was an Indian actor, writer, director and producer known for his work in Hindi cinema, through a career that spanned over six decades. He was ...
had set up Navketan Productions in Bombay present day Mumbai. ''Afsar'', starring Dev Anand and
Suraiya Suraiya Jamal Sheikh (15 June 1929 – 31 January 2004), popularly known by the mononym Suraiya, was a popular actress and playback singer in India's Hindi-language films. She was active from 1936 to 1963, and was the most celebrated actress ...
, was the first film made by Navketan, which turned out to be a moderate success. It was followed by ''
Taxi Driver ''Taxi Driver'' is a 1976 American film directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Paul Schrader, and starring Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris, and Albert Brooks. Set in a decaying and ...
'' and ''
Aandhiyan Aandhiyan (English: Storms) is a 1990 Hindi film directed by David Dhawan. It stars Shatrughan Sinha, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Madhushree and Mumtaz in her comeback role after 13 years. The film marked Bengali actor Prosenjit Chatterjee's Hindi fi ...
'', both of which he directed for the Navketan banner. While he made his reputation as a director, Anand kept on acting too occasionally. He appeared in ''Humsafar'' made in 1957. In 1957, he directed two movies ''Arpan'' and ''Anjali'', in which he played lead roles too. He went on to act in ''Kala Bazar'', ''Kinare-Kinare'', ''Aman'', ''Kanch Aur Heera'' and ''Hindustan Ki Kasam'', which he directed too. Later on Anand started his own production banner called
Himalaya films The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...
and teamed up with photographer Jal Mistry, music director
Madan Mohan Madan Mohan is a form of the Hindu god, Krishna. Krishna is celebrated as ''Madan Mohan'', who mesmerizes everyone. His consort, Radha is glorified as Madan Mohan's ''Mohini'', who can even mesmerise Madan Mohan (her Kahn). Radha is known as th ...
, lyrics writer
Kaifi Azmi Kaifi Azmi (born Athar Husain Rizvi; 14 January 1919 – 10 May 2002) was an Indian Urdu poet. He is remembered as the one who brought Urdu literature to Indian motion pictures. Together with Pirzada Qasim, Jaun Elia and others he participated ...
and actress
Priya Rajvansh Priya Rajvansh (30 December 1936 – 27 March 2000), born Vera Sunder Singh, was an Indian actress, who is known for her performance in Hindi films like ''Heer Raanjha'' (1970) and ''Hanste Zakhm'' (1973), amongst a handful of films she did dur ...
. Together they gave some of most memorable and unique films in Hindi cinema like '' Haqeeqat'', ''
Heer Raanjha ''Heer Raanjha'' is a 1970 Indian Hindi-language romantic musical film directed by Chetan Anand and produced by his son Ketan Anand. The film stars Raaj Kumar, Priya Rajvansh, Pran, Prithviraj Kapoor, Ajit, Jayant, Sonia Sahni, Kamini ...
'', '' Hanste Zakhm'', and '' Hindustan Ki Kasam''. Anand is known to be the film-maker who 'discovered'
Rajesh Khanna Rajesh Khanna () (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. He is called as the "First Superstar of Hindi cinema", he consecutively starred in a record ...
from an acting competition. Khanna as a result got his first break and was cast by Anand in the film ''
Aakhri Khat ''Aakhri Khat'' (English: The Last Letter) is a 1966 Bollywood film written and directed by Chetan Anand. This film marked the debut of Rajesh Khanna, who became the first superstar of Indian Cinema from 1969. The music of the film is by Khayya ...
'', although G.P.Sippy's 'Raaz' introducing Rajesh Khanna and Babita was the first 'released' film for Rajesh Khanna. ''Aakhari Khat'' is known for its beautiful locations, songs penned by Kaifi Aazmi, composed by Khayyam, the beautiful lady Indrani Mukherjee and the child star 'Bunty'. Actually Bunty and the music were the main attractions of this film. Anand later directed
Rajesh Khanna Rajesh Khanna () (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. He is called as the "First Superstar of Hindi cinema", he consecutively starred in a record ...
in the film ''
Kudrat ''Kudrat'' () is a 1981 Indian Hindi-language drama film, written and directed by Chetan Anand. The film stars Rajesh Khanna and Hema Malini, supported by Raaj Kumar, Priya Rajvansh and Vinod Khanna. This is the second movie of the Rajesh Kh ...
'', based on the theme of reincarnation. Apart from 17 feature films he is also known for the acclaimed television serial, ''
Param Vir Chakra The Param Vir Chakra (PVC) is India's highest military decoration, awarded for displaying distinguished acts of valour during wartime. Param Vir Chakra translates as the "Wheel of the Ultimate Brave", and the award is granted for "most conspicu ...
'', which was aired
Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...
in 1988.


Personal

In 1943, Anand married Uma Anand. The couple became the parents of two sons, Ketan Anand and Vivek Anand. However, they separated within a few years of marriage because of incompatibility. Divorce remains a very great taboo in India, for religious and cultural reasons, and until 1976, the law did not even permit divorce by mutual consent. Therefore the couple never got divorced. In the 1960s, well after being estranged from his wife, Anand fell in love with
Priya Rajvansh Priya Rajvansh (30 December 1936 – 27 March 2000), born Vera Sunder Singh, was an Indian actress, who is known for her performance in Hindi films like ''Heer Raanjha'' (1970) and ''Hanste Zakhm'' (1973), amongst a handful of films she did dur ...
, who had made her debut as heroine of his film '' Haqeeqat.'' The two fell in love during the making of this film and their relationship lasted all their lives. Priya Rajvansh worked in every single film made by Anand beginning with '' Haqeeqat,'' and more surprisingly, she did not work in a single film made by anyone else. Anand remained married to Uma, who refused to grant him a divorce because of the taboo and opprobrium attached to it and because divorce is utterly antithetical to the Hindu religion. Therefore Anand was unable to formalize his relationship with Priya Rajvansh even to his death, and they had no children together. Anand died on 6 July 1997, at the age of 76 in
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
.Haqeeqat director Chetan Anand
, ''
The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...
'', 7 July 1997. He bequeathed a very sizable portion of his wealth to Priya Rajvansh. This included the right of lifelong residence in his sprawling beachfront bungalow in
Juhu Juhu (Pronunciation: ͡ʒuɦuː is a posh and upmarket neighbourhood of Mumbai. It is known for the sprawling Juhu Beach. It is surrounded by the Arabian Sea to the west, Versova to the north, Vile Parle to the east and Santacruz to the south ...
,
Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, where real estate is among the most expensive in India. She was given no right to sell the property, which would revert to Anand's sons upon her death; the arrangement was made because Priya Rajvansh and Anand had had no children together, and this would enable her to live her whole life in the house that she had shared with him for two decades, while not depriving his sons of this valuable piece of real estate. On 27 March 2000, three years after his death, Priya Rajvansh mysteriously died in the same beachfront bungalow.


Legacy

''Chetan Anand: The Poetics of Film'', a book written by his wife
Uma Anand Uma Anand (1923 – 13 November 2009) was an Indian journalist, actress, and a broadcaster in the mid-1900s. She was born in 1923 in Lahore, Punjab, British India to a prominent Bengali Christian family. One of her sisters, Indu Mitha, is a Bh ...
and son Ketan Anand (Himalaya Films Media Entertainment), was released in 2006. A documentary by the same name made by Ketan Anand was released in 2008. A retrospective of his films was held at the Stuttgart Film Festival and at the India International Centre,
New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the capital of India and a part of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, Parliament House ...
in 2007.Chetan Anand at Stuttgart film fest
DNA, 13 June 2007.


Filmography


Director

;Films * ''
Neecha Nagar ''Neecha Nagar'' () is a 1946 Indian Hindi-language film, directed by Chetan Anand, written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Hayatullah Ansari, and produced by Rashid Anwar and A.Halim. It was a pioneering effort in social realism in Indian cinema a ...
'' (1946) * '' Afsar'' (1950) * ''
Aandhiyan Aandhiyan (English: Storms) is a 1990 Hindi film directed by David Dhawan. It stars Shatrughan Sinha, Prosenjit Chatterjee, Madhushree and Mumtaz in her comeback role after 13 years. The film marked Bengali actor Prosenjit Chatterjee's Hindi fi ...
'' (1952) * ''
Taxi Driver ''Taxi Driver'' is a 1976 American film directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Paul Schrader, and starring Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris, and Albert Brooks. Set in a decaying and ...
'' (1954) * ''
Funtoosh ''Funtoosh'' is a 1956 Hindi film directed by Chetan Anand. The film stars Dev Anand, Sheila Ramani and K. N. Singh. It was the ninth highest-grossing film of 1956, and was declared a "Hit". The music of the movie was an instant hit and songs ...
'' (1956) * ''Arpan'' (1957) * ''Kinare Kinare'' (1963) * '' Haqeeqat'' (1964) * ''
Aakhri Khat ''Aakhri Khat'' (English: The Last Letter) is a 1966 Bollywood film written and directed by Chetan Anand. This film marked the debut of Rajesh Khanna, who became the first superstar of Indian Cinema from 1969. The music of the film is by Khayya ...
'' (1966) * ''
Heer Raanjha ''Heer Raanjha'' is a 1970 Indian Hindi-language romantic musical film directed by Chetan Anand and produced by his son Ketan Anand. The film stars Raaj Kumar, Priya Rajvansh, Pran, Prithviraj Kapoor, Ajit, Jayant, Sonia Sahni, Kamini ...
'' (1970) * '' Hanste Zakhm'' (1973) * '' Hindustan Ki Kasam'' (1973) * '' Jaaneman'' (1976) * '' Saheb Bahadur'' (1977) * ''
Kudrat ''Kudrat'' () is a 1981 Indian Hindi-language drama film, written and directed by Chetan Anand. The film stars Rajesh Khanna and Hema Malini, supported by Raaj Kumar, Priya Rajvansh and Vinod Khanna. This is the second movie of the Rajesh Kh ...
'' (1981) * ''
Haathon Ki Lakeeren ''Haathon Ki Lakeeren'' ('' Lines On the Palm'') is a 1986 Indian Bollywood film produced and directed by Chetan Anand. It stars Sanjeev Kumar, Zeenat Aman, Jackie Shroff Yashodhan Pandit and Priya Rajvansh in pivotal roles. Cast * Sanjeev K ...
'' (1986) ;TV series * '' Param Veer Chakra'' (1988)


Producer

* Saheb Bahadur (1977) *
Haathon Ki Lakeeren ''Haathon Ki Lakeeren'' ('' Lines On the Palm'') is a 1986 Indian Bollywood film produced and directed by Chetan Anand. It stars Sanjeev Kumar, Zeenat Aman, Jackie Shroff Yashodhan Pandit and Priya Rajvansh in pivotal roles. Cast * Sanjeev K ...
(1986)


Actor

*
Kala Bazar ''Kala Bazar'' () is a 1960 Hindi crime film produced by Dev Anand for Navketan Films. Written and directed by Dev's younger brother Vijay Anand, the film starred Dev Anand, Waheeda Rehman, Vijay Anand, Chetan Anand, Nanda, Rashid Khan, Ma ...
(1960) * Arpan 1957 * Kinare Kinare (1963)


Awards

* 1946:
Palme d'Or The Palme d'Or (; en, Golden Palm) is the highest prize awarded at the Cannes Film Festival. It was introduced in 1955 by the festival's organizing committee. Previously, from 1939 to 1954, the festival's highest prize was the Grand Prix du Fe ...
(Best Film),
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
:
Neecha Nagar ''Neecha Nagar'' () is a 1946 Indian Hindi-language film, directed by Chetan Anand, written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas and Hayatullah Ansari, and produced by Rashid Anwar and A.Halim. It was a pioneering effort in social realism in Indian cinema a ...
* 1965:
National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film The National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film was one of the National Film Awards presented annually by the Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India. It was one of several a ...
: Haqeeqat * 1982:
Filmfare Best Story Award The Filmfare Award for Best Story is given by ''Filmfare'' as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a writer who wrote a film's story. List of winners 1950s * 1955 Mukhram Sharma – '' Aulad'' * 1956 Rajinder Singh ...
:
Kudrat ''Kudrat'' () is a 1981 Indian Hindi-language drama film, written and directed by Chetan Anand. The film stars Rajesh Khanna and Hema Malini, supported by Raaj Kumar, Priya Rajvansh and Vinod Khanna. This is the second movie of the Rajesh Kh ...


References


External links

*
Heer Ranjha – The Cinema of Chetan Anand
{{DEFAULTSORT:Anand, Chetan Film producers from Mumbai Hindi-language film directors Indian male screenwriters 1915 births 1997 deaths Government College University, Lahore alumni The Doon School faculty 20th-century Indian film directors Punjabi people Directors of Palme d'Or winners 20th-century Indian screenwriters 20th-century Indian male writers People from Lahore