''Aasman Mahal'' () is a 1965

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 ...

social family drama film directed by K. A. Abbas. Produced for the "Naya Sansar" banner, its story was written by Abbas, and the cinematographer was Ramchandra. The script and dialogues were by Inder Raj Anand. Prithviraj Kapoor's role as the impoverished

Nawab Nawab ( Balochi: نواب; ar, نواب; bn, নবাব/নওয়াব; hi, नवाब; Punjabi : ਨਵਾਬ; Persian, Punjabi , Sindhi, Urdu: ), also spelled Nawaab, Navaab, Navab, Nowab, Nabob, Nawaabshah, Nawabshah or Nobab, ...

, was acclaimed in the film for its "authenticity". Dilip Raj, son of P. Jairaj, played the hero, having earlier acted in ''

Shehar Aur Sapna ''Shehar Aur Sapna'' () is 1963 Hindi film directed by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, about a young couple searching in vain for a home of their own in a metropolis, amidst the backdrop of rapidly developing city, and the many who flocked to it in hope for ...

'' (1963). The other co-stars were Surekha,

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

Nana Palsikar Nana Palshikar ( mr, नाना पळशीकर) (1907 – 1 June 1984) was an Indian actor who appeared in over 80 Hindi films. He made his film debut in 1935 with ''Dhuwandhar'', and went on to play character roles in both Hindi mainstream ...

, Anwar Hussain. The story revolves around a Nawab, who having lost his money, still continues to live in the old traditional style, maintaining a grandeur facade. His son opposes the unrealistic life-style.

Plot

An elderly impoverished Nawab lives in his ancestral Haveli (Mansion). A business man wants to buy it, in order to convert it into a hotel. Though financially in a desperate state, the Nawab refuses to sell his property and clings on to his old-fashioned ideals of nobility. His son, is dissolute and not of much account, but he is able to let go of the aristocratic baggage. He is in love with the daughter of the house help. Aasman Mahal evokes other stories of a decaying aristocracy like Chekhov's The Cherry Orchard set in Russia and Lampedusa's The Leopard set in Sicily and Premchand's Shatranj Ke Khilari set in Lucknow.

Cast

* Prithviraj Kapoor * Dilip Raj * Surekha *

* Mridula Rani * David Abraham * Anwar Hussain * Madhukar * Irshad Panjatan *

Rashid Khan Rashid Khan Arman ( ps, ; born 20 September 1998) is an Afghan international cricketer and a former captain of the national team. In franchise leagues, he plays for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Adelaide Strikers in Austra ...

Production

Cited in the

Limca Book of Records The ''Limca Book of Records'' is an annual reference book published in India documenting world records held by Indians. The records are further categorized into education, literature, agriculture, medical science, business, sports, nature, advent ...

to be one of the first films to be "shot on location without sets", thereby not making use of "studio" sets. The film shooting took place in its entirety in Hyderabad. Prithviraj Kapoor's acting won him a special "Honor at the Karlovy Awards".

Soundtrack

One of the notable songs by composer J. P. Kaushik from the film, and described as an "introspective" and "philosophical" number, was "Main Aahein Bhar Nahin Sakta". The lyricists were Ali Sardar Jafri and Majaz Lakhnawi, and the singers were Vijaya Majumdar,

Mahendra Kapoor Mahendra Kapoor (9 January 1934 – 27 September 2008) was an Indian playback singer. In a long career spanning decades, his repertoire included popular songs such as ''Chalo ekbaar phir se Ajnabi ban jayen hum dono'' ( Gumrah) and ''Neele Gag ...

Geeta Dutt Geeta Dutt (born Geeta Ghosh Roy Chowdhuri; 23 November 1930 – 20 July 1972) was an Indian playback singer and a famous Hindi and Bengali classical artist, born in Faridpur before the Partition of India. She found particular prominence as a ...

and Madhukar.

Songlist

References

External links

* {{K. A. Abbas 1965 films 1960s Hindi-language films 1965 drama films Films directed by K. A. Abbas Films scored by J. P. Kaushik Indian drama films Hindi-language drama films