''Mammo'' is a 1994 Indian Hindi film by

Shyam Benegal Shyam Benegal (born 14 December 1934) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker. Often regarded as the pioneer of parallel cinema, he is widely considered as one of the greatest filmmakers post 1970s. He has received ...

. It stars

Farida Jalal Farida Jalal (born Farida Sami; 18 May 1950) is an Indian actress who primarily worked in Hindi films. In a film career spanning almost fifty years, Jalal appeared in over 200 films. Best known for her character-driven roles in independent cin ...

, Surekha Sikri, Amit Phalke and

Rajit Kapur Rajit Kapur is an Indian film and theatre actor and director. He is known for his portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi in the 1996 film, '' The Making of the Mahatma'' for which he won the National Film Award for Best Actor. Other notable roles are as ...

. The film won the

National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi The National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi is 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 is one of several a ...

in 1995. Farida Jalal won Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance, while Surekha Sikri won the

National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress The National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress is an honour presented annually at India's National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF), an organisation set up by the Indian Ministry of Information and Broadcast ...

. It was the first film of his

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

trilogy A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected and can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, and video games, and are less common in other art forms. Three-part wor ...

, which included ''

Sardari Begum ''Sardari Begum'' is a 1996 Indian musical film directed by Shyam Benegal. The film stars Kiron Kher, Amrish Puri, Rajit Kapur and Rajeshwari Sachdev. The film's lead actress Kiron Kher won the 1997 National Film Award - Special Jury Award. ...

'' (1996) and ''

Zubeidaa ''Zubeidaa'' is a 2001 Indian film directed by Shyam Benegal and written by Khalid Mohammed. It stars Karisma Kapoor, Rekha, Manoj Bajpayee, Surekha Sikri, Rajit Kapoor, Lillete Dubey, Amrish Puri, Farida Jalal, and Shakti Kapoor. A.R. Rah ...

'' (2001). The film was critically acclaimed and is regarded amongst Benegal's best works.

Plot

13-year-old Riyaz (Amit Phalke) lives a poor lifestyle in Bombay, India, with his grandmother, Fayyuzi ( Surekha Sikri), and her sister, Mehmooda Begum, alias Mammo (

). Quite outspoken and embittered over his dad abandoning him, Riyaz does not have many friends, save for Rohan. When Mammo plans a surprise birthday party for him, Riyaz is offended as he believes his friends will make fun of him as his lifestyle is not as good as theirs. Fayyuzi and Riyaz have an argument with Mammo, and she leaves for the mosque at Haji Ali; she returns when they apologize. Although Mammo was born in Panipat during the British Raj, she was one of thousands of Muslims who left for Pakistan after Partition. She and her husband automatically became Pakistani citizens. Although childless, her marriage is a happy one until her husband's death. Over property matters, Mammo is thrown out of the house by her relatives. Having nowhere else to go, she came to live with her widowed sister in Bombay on a temporary visa. Every month she walks to the nearest police station to get an extension. She finally paid Rs.4800 as a bribe to get a permanent visa through Inspector Apte. When Apte was transferred, a new police inspector took over, processed her papers, took her to be an illegal immigrant, arrested her, had her escorted to the Bombay Central Railway Station and forced her to board the Frontier Mail, which would return her to Pakistan. Riyaz and Fayyuzi make every possible attempt to trace and bring her back, all in vain. Now 20 years later, Riyaz has grown up and has written a book about his Mammo, hoping that someday, somewhere she will find it and they will be reunited. The movie touches upon several emotional aspects of day-to-day life. Unable to extend her visa, she is deported back to Pakistan. Political priorities defeat humanitarian ones. The director shows a happy ending where Mammo comes to Riyaz and her sister at the end. She pretends that she is dead so that she can continue to stay in India thereafter.

Cast

as Mammo * Surekha Sikri as Fayyazi * Amit Phalke as Riyaz (Young) *

Rajit Kapoor Rajit Kapur is an Indian people, Indian film and theatre actor and director. He is known for his portrayal of Mahatma Gandhi in the 1996 film, ''The Making of the Mahatma'' for which he won the National Film Award for Best Actor. Other notabl ...

as Riyaz (Adult) *

Lalit Tiwari Lalit Tiwari is an Indian film and television actor. His best-known television roles are that of Sanjaya in the series '' Mahabharat'' (1988–1990), and the one in the historical television series '' Bharat Ek Khoj - The Discovery of India'' ...

as Riyaz's father *

Himani Shivpuri Himani Bhatt Shivpuri (born 24 October 1960) is an Indian actress known for her character roles in Bollywood films and Hindi soap operas. Her films include '' Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!'' (1994), ''Raja'' (1995), '' Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge'' (1 ...

as Anwari, Mammo's sister *

Shrivallabh Vyas Shri Vallabh Vyas was an Indian film and television actor. He was known for films including '' Sarfarosh'' (1999), ''Lagaan'' (2001), '' Abhay'' (2001), '' Aan: Men at Work'' (2004), '' Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero'' (2005), ' ...

as Sabir *

Sandeep Kulkarni Sandeep Kulkarni (born 16 November) is an Indian actor and painter. He has worked in Marathi films as well as theatre. Early life and background Born in Pune, Sandeep was raised in a Maharashtrian middle-class family by father Shrikant Kulka ...

as Inspector Apte *

Rupal Patel Rupal Patel is an Indian actress best known for portraying Kokila Modi in '' Saath Nibhaana Saathiya'' —one of the longest-running Indian TV soaps—and Meenakshi Rajvansh in '' Yeh Rishtey Hain Pyaar Ke''. In 2020, she had reprised her rol ...

as Lady Constable

Soundtrack

The music soundtrack to ''Mammo'' was composed by

Vanraj Bhatia Vanraj Bhatia (Hindi: वनराज भाटिया ; 31 May 1927 – 7 May 2021) was an Indian composer best known for his work in Indian New Wave cinema. He was also one of the leading composers of Western classical music in India. Bha ...

and the lyrics were written by

Gulzar Sampooran Singh Kalra (born 18 August 1934), known professionally as Gulzar, is an Indian Urdu poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, and film director known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of greatest Urdu poets of this ...

and the song was sung by

Jagjit Singh Jagjit Singh (born Jagmohan Singh Dhiman; 8 February 1941 – 10 October 2011) was an Indian composer, singer and musician. He composed and sang in numerous languages and is credited for the revival and popularity of ghazal, an Indian c ...

Accolades

References

External links

* {{Shyam Benegal 1994 drama films 1994 films 1990s Hindi-language films Films with screenplays by Shama Zaidi Films directed by Shyam Benegal Films featuring a Best Supporting Actress National Film Award-winning performance Films set in Mumbai Best Hindi Feature Film National Film Award winners National Film Development Corporation of India films