biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Saadat Hasan Manto Saadat Hasan Manto (; Punjabi, ur, , ; 11 May 1912 – 18 January 1955) was a Pakistani writer, playwright and author born in Ludhiana, who was active in British India and later, after the 1947 partition of India, in Pakistan. Writing ma ...

, written and directed by

Nandita Das Nandita Das (born 7 November 1969) is an Indian actress and director. She has acted in over 40 feature films in ten different languages. Das appeared in the films ''Fire'' (1996), ''Earth'' (1998), '' Bawandar'' (2000), '' Kannathil Muthamittal' ...

. The film stars

Nawazuddin Siddiqui Nawazuddin Siddiqui (; born 19 May 1974) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is an alumnus of the National School of Drama. Siddiqui's feature film debut was alongside director Prashant Bhargava in ''Patang'' (2012). He ga ...

in the title character of Indo-Pakistani, author and writer Saadat Hasan Manto.

Tahir Raj Bhasin Tahir Raj Bhasin (born 21 April 1987) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. Born in Delhi, he holds a master's degree in media from the University of Melbourne. Bhasin made his screen debut with '' Kismat Love Paisa Dilli'' (2012) and mad ...

plays the 1940s Hindi film superstar Shyam Chadda.

Shyam Shyam is a name of Krishna and an Indian masculine given name and surname. Notable people with this name include: ;Shyam *Shyam (actor), Indian Hindi film actor *Shyam (composer), an Indian music composer from Kerala * Shyam Benegal, Indian film di ...

was Manto's friend, confidant, and inspiration for a number of stories.

Rasika Dugal Rasika Dugal (born 17 January 1985) is an Indian actress. She is known for her roles in several Indian movies and television shows. She made her screen debut with a small role, in the film '' Anwar'' (2007). And then she went onto star in many ...

plays the role of Manto's wife, Safia. ''Manto'' is based on the 1940s post-Independence period of India. Manto earned seven nominations at

64th Filmfare Awards The 64th Filmfare Awards ceremony, presented by The Times Group, honored the best Indian Hindi-language films of 2018. The ceremony was held on 23 March 2019 in Mumbai. ''Padmaavat'' led the ceremony with 18 nominations, followed by ''Raazi'' ...

including Best Film Critics, Best Actor Critics for Siddiqui. The poster of the film was unveiled at the

2017 Cannes Film Festival The 70th Cannes Film Festival took place from 17 to 28 May 2017, in Cannes, France. Spanish film director and screenwriter Pedro Almodóvar was the President of the Jury for the festival and Italian actress Monica Bellucci hosted the opening and ...

. Das made a short film titled ''In Defence of Freedom'', also starring Nawazuddin in the main role, and was released on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

on 23 March 2017. The film premiered at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival and released in Indian theatres on 21 September 2018. It was made as a prelude to the feature film. The film has multiple producers such as HP Studios, Filmstoc, and Viacom 18 Motion Pictures.

Plot

Bombay, 1946: Amidst the freedom struggle against the British Empire and the forewarning of India being partitioned, Saadat Hasan Manto, a well-established short story writer works in the glittering world of the Bombay film industry as a scriptwriter. Although Manto has a tenuous relationship with the Progressive Writers’ Association, many of its members are his close friends, including the feminist writer,

Ismat Chughtai Ismat Chughtai (21 August 1915 – 24 October 1991) was an Indian Urdu novelist, short story writer, liberal humanist and filmmaker. Beginning in the 1930s, she wrote extensively on themes including female sexuality and femininity, middle-class ...

. They are both acquitted from the charge of obscenity for their respective works. Manto has many admirers and friends in the film industry. The closest is

Shyam Chadda Sunder Shyam Chadda (20 February 1920 – 25 April 1951) was an Indian actor in Hindi cinema. He began his career in 1942 and worked in over 30 films until his death in 1951 at the age of 31. Early life and career Shyam was born Sunder Shyam C ...

, a charming budding actor and

Ashok Kumar Kumudlal Ganguly (13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), better known by his stage name Ashok Kumar and also by Dadamoni, was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema and who was a member of the cinematic Ganguly family. He ...

, a famous actor, director and producer. But, his biggest supporter and the unwavering pillar of strength is his wife, Safia. Soon after, India gains independence on 15 August 1947 and the new nation of Pakistan is born. Safia leaves for Lahore to attend her sister's wedding. Despite flaring Hindu-Muslim tensions, Manto decides to stay back in his beloved city of Bombay. One day, Shyam, on hearing that his family was forced to flee Pakistan because of a Muslim mob attack, tells Manto in anger: "I could have even killed you." Shocked and anguished, a non-practicing Muslim, Manto suddenly becomes conscious of his religious identity and the vulnerabilities that come with it. He impulsively makes the unimaginable decision of moving to Pakistan. Lahore, 1948: A melancholic city full of refugees, forsaken property, and burnt buildings becomes Manto's new home. He is left grappling with a growing sense of isolation and a deep sense of betrayal. As he struggles to come to terms with his new reality, he spirals into a state of perpetual drunkenness. Though Safia continues to stand by him, their marriage begins to feel the strain. Relentless and long-drawn court trials alleging obscenity in his story Thanda Gosht (literal meaning: Cold Meat) take a severe toll on his health and finances. His statement in defense of literature and free speech is met with conviction. Despite this, he continues to pen some of his sharpest and most courageous works. His compulsions to write and drink are in direct conflict with his desire to see his family - his wife and two daughters, happy and secure. His failing health makes him hallucinate. Unable to see his family suffer any longer, he finally admits himself into the alcohol rehabilitation center at Lahore Mental Hospital. The main narrative is seamlessly interspersed with five of his poignant stories. The last one being his most famous story -

Toba Tek Singh Toba Tek Singh ( pnb, , ur, ) is a city and capital of Toba Tek Singh District in the Pakistani province of Punjab. It is surrounded by cities of Gojra, Kamalia, Rajana, Pir Mahal and Shorkot. History The city and district is named af ...

. Manto begins the story with, "two or three years after Partition, it occurred to the governments of India and Pakistan to exchange their lunatics like they had exchanged their criminals. The Muslim lunatics in India were to be sent to Pakistan and the Hindu lunatics in Pakistani asylums were to be handed over to India." The Sikh protagonist, who has vowed to remain standing until he finds his village, lies in death in no-man's land, between the two nations. Manto's predicament is not too different.

Cast

*

Nawazuddin Siddiqui Nawazuddin Siddiqui (; born 19 May 1974) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is an alumnus of the National School of Drama. Siddiqui's feature film debut was alongside director Prashant Bhargava in ''Patang'' (2012). He ga ...

as

Saadat Hasan Manto Saadat Hasan Manto (; Punjabi, ur, , ; 11 May 1912 – 18 January 1955) was a Pakistani writer, playwright and author born in Ludhiana, who was active in British India and later, after the 1947 partition of India, in Pakistan. Writing ma ...

*

Rasika Dugal Rasika Dugal (born 17 January 1985) is an Indian actress. She is known for her roles in several Indian movies and television shows. She made her screen debut with a small role, in the film '' Anwar'' (2007). And then she went onto star in many ...

as Safia *

Tahir Raj Bhasin Tahir Raj Bhasin (born 21 April 1987) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. Born in Delhi, he holds a master's degree in media from the University of Melbourne. Bhasin made his screen debut with '' Kismat Love Paisa Dilli'' (2012) and mad ...

as

Shyam Shyam is a name of Krishna and an Indian masculine given name and surname. Notable people with this name include: ;Shyam *Shyam (actor), Indian Hindi film actor *Shyam (composer), an Indian music composer from Kerala * Shyam Benegal, Indian film di ...

*

Feryna Wazheir Feryna Wazheir is a British actress. She began her acting career in amateur theatre and made her break in the industry after she was discovered by Indian photographer Farrokh Chothia. Feryna has been a part of Bollywood films; Ketan Mehta's '' ...

as

Nargis Nargis Dutt (born Fatima Rashid; 1 June 1929 – 3 May 1981) was an Indian actress and politician who worked in Hindi cinema. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in the history of Indian cinema, she made her screen debut in a minor role ...

*

Javed Akhtar Javed Akhtar (born 17 January 1945) is an Indian poet, lyricist, screenwriter and political activist. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 200 ...

as Abid Ali Abid * Chandan Roy Sanyal as

Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi ( ur, ) born Ahmad Shah Awan ( ur, ) (20 November 1916 - 10 July 2006) was an Urdu language Pakistani poet, journalist, literary critic, dramatist and short story author. He wrote 50 books on topics such as poetry, fiction ...

*

Vinod Nagpal Vinod ( hi, विनोद , mr, विनोद , gu, વિનોદ) is a male given name used in India and Nepal, meaning "delight", "enjoyment", or "pleasure". People *Vinod Agarwal, Indian-American businessman and scientist * Vinod Agg ...

as Bishan Singh *

Rishi Kapoor Rishi Raj Kapoor (4 September 1952 — 30 April 2020) was an Indian actor, film director and producer who worked in Hindi films Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry base ...

as Film Producer *

Inaamulhaq Inaamulhaq (born 14 November 1979) is an Indian actor and screenwriter who has been part of several commercial and critically acclaimed Bollywood films, including ''Filmistaan'', '' Jolly LLB 2'' and ''Airlift''. In 2019 Inaamulhaq has bagged t ...

as Hamid *

Ranvir Shorey Ranvir Shorey is an Indian actor and former VJ who works in Hindi films and television. Since making his debut in '' Ek Chhotisi Love Story'' (2002), he has starred in a number of high-profile films such as '' Jism'' (2003) and '' Lakshya'' ( ...

as Ishar Singh *

Rajshri Deshpande Rajshri Deshpande is an Indian actress and activist. She gained international recognition with her portrayal of Laxami in Pan Nalin's ''Angry Indian Goddesses''. This was followed by the titular role of Durga in Sanal Kumar Sasidharan's '' Sex ...

as

Ismat Chugtai Ismat Chughtai (21 August 1915 – 24 October 1991) was an Indian Urdu novelist, short story writer, liberal humanist and filmmaker. Beginning in the 1930s, she wrote extensively on themes including female sexuality and femininity, middle-class ...

*

Ila Arun Ila Arun is an Indian actress, TV personality and Rajasthani folk and folk-pop singer. She has appeared in many prominent Bollywood movies such as ''Lamhe'', ''Jodhaa Akbar'', ''Shaadi Ke Side Effects'' and '' Begum Jaan''. Personal life Arun ...

as

Jaddanbai Jaddanbai Hussain (Hindi: जद्दनबाई हुसैन, Punjabi: ਜੱਦਨਬਾਈ ਹੁਸੈਨ, Urdu: ; 1892 – April 8, 1949; known professionally as Jaddanbai) was an Indian singer, music composer, dancer, actress, filmma ...

*

Divya Dutta Divya Dutta (born 25 September 1977) is an Indian actress and model. She has appeared in Hindi and Punjabi cinema, in addition to Malayalam and English-language films. She has received many awards including a National Film Award, a Filmfare Aw ...

as Kulwant Kaur *

Paresh Rawal Paresh Rawal (born 30 May 1955) is an Indian actor, comedian, film producer and politician known for his works notably in Hindi films, and Telugu, and a few Gujarati and a few Tamil films. He has appeared in over 240 films and is the recipient ...

as Pimp *

Tillotama Shome Tillotama Shome is an Indian actress. She was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the 63rd Filmfare Awards for her role in ''A Death in the Gunj''. In 2021, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress (Critics) for portraying a praisewor ...

as Prostitute *

Vijay Varma Vijay Varma is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Hindi cinema. Varma rose to prominence with his role in ''Pink'' (2016) and has since acted in critically-acclaimed roles in '' MCA'' (2017), ''Gully Boy'' (2019), ''Baaghi 3'' (2 ...

* Saharsh Kumar Shukla *

Shashank Arora Shashank Arora (born 21 February 1991) is an Indian actor and musician. He is known for his roles in '' Titli'' (2014), ''Brahman Naman'' (2016), Moothon (2019) and ''Made in Heaven'' (2019). He is the only Indian actor to have two films compe ...

as Shaad Amritsari *

Gurdas Maan Gurdas Maan is an Indian playback singer, songwriter and actor mainly associated with Punjabi and Hindi language music and films. He gained national attention in 1980 with the song "Dil Da Mamla Hai". Since then, he had gone on to record over 3 ...

as Sirajuddin * Danish Husain as Asad Zaidi * Bhanu Uday as

Ashok Kumar Kumudlal Ganguly (13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), better known by his stage name Ashok Kumar and also by Dadamoni, was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema and who was a member of the cinematic Ganguly family. He ...

* Madhurjeet Sarghi as

Nasira Iqbal Justice Nasira Javid Iqbal ( ur, ) is a Pakistani jurist and law professor who served as a justice of the Lahore High Court from 1994 to 2002. Education and career Nasira Iqbal has a degree in intellectual property law from Punjab Unive ...

Production

Background

Saadat Hasan Manto's (1912-1955) short stories set during the devastating partition of the Indian subcontinent were his defining works. These irreverent, unflinching but deeply humane stories, earned him the wrath of the British Indian government and later of Pakistan. The stories were deemed obscene by the courts and he spent his last years fighting legal battles to defend his right to write. Today, his work is seen by both scholars and the reading public as one of the most authentic and independent accounts of the human tragedy of those years.

Casting

In November 2015, it was reported that

Nandita Das Nandita Das (born 7 November 1969) is an Indian actress and director. She has acted in over 40 feature films in ten different languages. Das appeared in the films ''Fire'' (1996), ''Earth'' (1998), '' Bawandar'' (2000), '' Kannathil Muthamittal' ...

had approached actor

Irrfan Khan Irrfan Khan () (born Sahabzade Irfan Ali Khan; 7 January 196729 April 2020), also known simply as Irrfan, was an Indian actor who worked in Indian cinema as well as British and American films. Widely regarded as one of the finest actors in In ...

to play the leading role in her film Manto. Nandita said that, "Irrfan fits the role to the T as he speaks fluent Urdu, looks a lot like Manto and, above all, is a wonderful actor. He has read a lot of Manto himself and is influenced by him." In May 2016, during the

69th Cannes Film Festival The 69th Cannes Film Festival was held from 11 to 22 May 2016. Australian director George Miller was the President of the Jury for the main competition. French actor Laurent Lafitte was the host for the opening and closing ceremonies. On 15 Marc ...

Nandita announced that

Nawazuddin Siddiqui Nawazuddin Siddiqui (; born 19 May 1974) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is an alumnus of the National School of Drama. Siddiqui's feature film debut was alongside director Prashant Bhargava in ''Patang'' (2012). He ga ...

had been finalized for the central role of Manto in her next film. Nandita said that, "I have had Nawazuddin in mind from the very outset, but in India, economics always interferes with art and there was pressure on me to cast a more mainstream star."

Filming

The film was shot on various locations across Mumbai and the lahore portions were shot in the village called Vaso (Nadiad) in Gujarat. The shooting continued for 41 days before reaching its endpoint in July 2017.

Release

It was selected to compete in the

Un Certain Regard (, meaning 'a certain glance') is a section of the Cannes Film Festival's official selection. It is run at the Debussy, parallel to the competition for the . This section was introduced in 1978 by Gilles Jacob. The section presents 20 films w ...

section at the

2018 Cannes Film Festival The 71st annual Cannes Film Festival was held from 8 to 19 May 2018. Australian actress Cate Blanchett acted as President of the Jury. The Japanese film ''Shoplifters'', directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda, won the Palme d'Or. Asghar Farhadi's psycho ...

. The official teaser of the film was released on 12 May 2018. The trailer of film was released on 14 August 2018.

Soundtrack

The music of the film is composed by

Sneha Khanwalkar Sneha Khanwalkar is an Indian music director who works in Hindi films. She is best known for her score for the film, ''Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!'', and also for ''Gangs of Wasseypur Part 1, Part 2''. She had been nominated in Best Music Director ...

and

Raftaar Dilin Nair (born 16 November 1988), better known by his stage name Raftaar, is an Indian rapper, lyricist, dancer, TV personality and music composer associated with Hindi and Punjabi music. He started his career as a dancer. He began his car ...

while the lyrics have been penned by

Dibakar Banerjee Dibakar Banerjee (born 21 June 1969) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer and advertisement-filmmaker known for his work in Hindi films. Banerjee started his career in advertising, being a feature filmmaker, he still continues t ...

, Simaab Akbarabadi,

Meeraji Mohammad Sanaullah Dar (25 May 1912 – 3 November 1949), better known as Meeraji was an Indian Urdu poet. He lived the life of a bohemian, working only intermittently. Early life Born into a Kashmiri family of Gujranwala and named Moham ...

,

Faiz Ahmed Faiz Faiz Ahmad ''Faiz'' (13 February 1911 – 20 November 1984; Urdu, Punjabi: فیض احمد فیض) was a Pakistani poet, and author of Urdu and Punjabi literature. Faiz was one of the most celebrated Pakistani Urdu writers of his time. Out ...

,

Raftaar Dilin Nair (born 16 November 1988), better known by his stage name Raftaar, is an Indian rapper, lyricist, dancer, TV personality and music composer associated with Hindi and Punjabi music. He started his career as a dancer. He began his car ...

and

Saadat Hasan Manto Saadat Hasan Manto (; Punjabi, ur, , ; 11 May 1912 – 18 January 1955) was a Pakistani writer, playwright and author born in Ludhiana, who was active in British India and later, after the 1947 partition of India, in Pakistan. Writing ma ...

. The first song of the film titled as "Nagri Nagri" sung by

Shankar Mahadevan Shankar Mahadevan (born 3 March 1967) is an Indian singer and composer who is part of the Shankar–Ehsaan–Loy trio that writes music for Indian films. Personal life and early career Shankar Mahadevan was born in Chembur, Mumbai into a Tami ...

was released 31 August 2018. The album released by

Zee Music Company Zee Music Co. (ZMC) is an Indian music company, a subsidiary of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. It carries its business activities mainly from New Delhi. The company has captured a major chunk of market share in Bollywood music in a short ...

on 9 September 2018. Nandita Das had asked Khanwalkar not to use any electronic music. Moreover, the composer was asked to compose songs from poems of 1940s and 50s. Three poems were chosen for this. The song "Ban Titli" was made by the composer for a

Dibakar Banerjee Dibakar Banerjee (born 21 June 1969) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer and advertisement-filmmaker known for his work in Hindi films. Banerjee started his career in advertising, being a feature filmmaker, he still continues t ...

-project which was cancelled. Vipin Nair of ''

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

'' gave the soundtrack 4/5, calling it a "whopper" soundtrack and wishing it was longer.

Reception

Accolades

References

External links

* *
''Manto''
at

Bollywood Hungama Bollywood Hungama (lit. "Bollywood Madness" in Hindi), previously known as IndiaFM (or IndiaFM.com), is a Bollywood entertainment website, owned by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, which acquired the website in 2000. The website provides ...

* {{Saadat Hasan Manto 2010s Hindi-language films 2018 films Films scored by Sneha Khanwalkar Films scored by Raftaar Indian films based on actual events Indian biographical drama films Saadat Hasan Manto Viacom18 Studios films Films about writers Films set in the partition of India Drama films based on actual events 2010s Urdu-language films Films set in the 1940s Films about Bollywood Films set in Lahore 2018 biographical drama films 2018 drama films Films set in Mumbai Films shot in Mumbai Faiz Ahmad Faiz

Plot

Cast

Production

Background

Casting

Filming

Release

Soundtrack

Reception

Accolades

See also

References

External links