The Shahnoor Studios (also spelled as Shahnur Studios) is the studio taken over by

Syed Shaukat Hussain Rizvi Syed Shaukat Hussain Rizvi (1914 – 1999) was a Pakistani actor, film producer and director. He is widely considered as a pioneer of the Pakistani film industry. Early life and career Shaukat Hussain Rizvi was born in the city of Azamgarh, ...

and his first wife,

Noor Jehan Noor Jehan ( Punjabi: ) (born () Allah Rakhi Wasai ; 23 September 1926 – 23 December 2000; sometimes spelled Noorjehan),Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen, ''Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema,'' British Film Institute, Oxford University Pres ...

in the aftermath of the

independence of Pakistan The Pakistan Movement ( ur, , translit=Teḥrīk-e-Pākistān) was a political movement in the first half of the 20th century that aimed for the creation of Pakistan from the Muslim-majority areas of British India. It was connected to the per ...

in 1947. The studio is one of the oldest studios 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. ...

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...

and was previously known as Shori Studios.

Historical background

During the 1940s 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- ...

, Rizvi initially owned a company called ''Shaukat Art Productions''. Before coming to Pakistan, Rizvi had directed 5 films in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

starring

. *

Khandan Khandan may refer to: * Khandan Rural District, rural district in Iran * Khandaan (1942 film) (pre-Partition Punjabi Urdu film) * Khandan (1965 film) (Hindi film) * Khandaan (1979 film), an Indian Hindi-language drama film * Khandaan (TV series) Kh ...

(1942) - a hit film, with music by Ghulam Haider * Naukar (1943) - a film written by

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 ...

* Dost (1944) - a hit film, with music by Sajjad Hussain * Zeenat (1945) - a hit film, with music by ''Meer Saheb'' and ''Hafiz Khan'' including a super-hit

Qawwali Qawwali ( Punjabi: (Shahmukhi), (Gurmukhi); Urdu: (Nasta'liq); Hindi: क़व्वाली (Devanagari); Bengali: কাওয়ালি (Bengali)) is a form of Sufi Islamic devotional singing, originating from the Indian subcontinent ...

in it * Jugnu (1947) - a hit film, with super-hit music by

Feroz Nizami Feroz Nizami (born Ferozuddin Ahmad; 10 November 1910 – 15 November 1975), was a Pakistani film score composer, music director and classical singer. He composed music for bollywood films in British India and after partition, he remained activ ...

In 1948, after the independence of Pakistan, Noor Jehan and Rizvi shifted to

. On the vandalised remains of what had been the old ''Shorey Studios'', they rebuilt a new studio called Shahnoor Studios, taking the word 'Shah' from Rizvi's name and the word 'Noor' from Noor Jehan's name. It was built from scratch and was finally completed and opened in 1950. The first film to be made there was the Punjabi

film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

, ''Chanwey'' (1951), a blockbuster film with music by ''Feroze Nizami''. Noor Jehan and Rizvi directed this Punjabi film together, since Rizvi did not speak the Punjabi language fluently. The film became a huge success and brought Noor Jehan fame and fortune in Pakistan. The studio's early years brought great success as all of Rizvi's films were shot in this studio. However, with the divorce of Rizvi and Noor Jehan in 1955, Noor Jehan had to write off her share of the Shahnoor Studios to Shaukat Hussain Rizvi in the divorce court, to get the custody of her daughter, Zile Huma and also agree to the condition that she would not shoot films in this studio again. Syed Shaukat's career, after the divorce, wasn't as great as it used to be in India, because in marrying Noor Jehan, he was mainly successful because of her. He was only able to make three flop films after his divorce. After the death of

Shaukat Hussain Rizvi Syed Shaukat Hussain Rizvi (1914 – 1999) was a Pakistani actor, film producer and director. He is widely considered as a pioneer of the Pakistani film industry. Early life and career Shaukat Hussain Rizvi was born in the city of Azamgarh, U ...

in 1998 at age 85, this studio is currently managed by Rizvi's three sons, ''Shahenshah Rizvi'', ''Ali Mujtaba Rizvi'', and ''Asghar Hussain Rizvi''.

References

Pakistani film studios Mass media in Lahore {{film-studio-stub

Historical background

See also

References