Manto (2015 film)
Manto | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Sarmad Khoosat |
Screenplay by | Shahid Nadeem |
Produced by | Babar Javed |
Starring |
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Cinematography | Khizer Idrees |
Edited by | Kashif Nawazish Kashif Sarmad Khoosat |
Music by | Jamal Rahman |
Production company | A & B Entertainment |
Distributed by | Geo Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 127 minutes |
Country | Pakistan |
Language | Urdu |
Box office | Rs. 50.5 million (US$170,000) |
Manto (Urdu: منٹو) is a 2015 Pakistani biographical drama film based on the life of Pakistani short-story writer Sadat Hassan Manto, starring Sarmad Khoosat in the title role.[2] It was directed by Khoosat himself, produced by Babar Javed, and written by Shahid Nadeem, whose screenplay was adapted from Manto's short stories,[3] particularly "Thanda Gosht", "Madari", "License", "Hatak" and "Peshawar Se Lahore".[4] It also depicts his relationship with singer-actress Noor Jehan.[5] The film was released on 11 September 2015, sixty years after Manto's death.[6]
The full-length official trailer was released on 29 August 2015.[7] The motion trailer along with film music was released on 6 August 2015.[8] The TV series on the life of writer entitled Main Manto with the same cast and production, initially made in 2012, was aired in December 2015.
Plot
[edit]The story is about a 20th-century writer, Manto (played by Sarmad Khoosat), who grew up in the showbiz industry of Bombay (now Mumbai) and Lahore. It focuses the last seven years of the writer's life, during which he wrote some of his most controversial stories, such as "Thanda Gosht", "Toba Tek Singh", "License", "Upar, Neechay aur Darmiyan" and "Peshawar Se Lahore". For these, Manto had to face charges of obscenity thrice.[9]
Cast
[edit]- Sarmad Khoosat as Saadat Hasan Manto
- Sania Saeed as Safiya Manto
- Saba Qamar as Noor Jehan
- Danyal Adam Khan as Hamid Jalal
- Adnan Jaffar as Qudrat Ullah Shahab
- Shamoon Abbasi as Eishar Singh
- Aliee Shaikh as Khuda Bakash
- Tipu Sharif as Shaukat Hussain Rizvi
- Talha Mufti as Nawaz
- Arjumand Rahim as Nazneen (a Tawaif)
- Hina Khawaja Bayat as Begum Sahiba
- Rehan Sheikh as Mian Saheb
- Faisal Qureshi as Radio Actor
- Mizna Waqas as Minal
- Nadia Afghan as Saugandhi
- Savera Nadeem
- Nimra Bucha
- Irfan Khoosat
- Afraz Rasool
- Shakeel Hussain Khan as Manto's Doctor
- Yasra Rizvi as Balwant Kaur
- Qaiser Naqvi as Sardar Begum
- Mahira Khan as Madaran (appeared in screen credits and in the song "Kya Hoga")[10]
- Azfar Rehman as a Passenger (appeared in screen credits and in the song "Kya Hoga")
- Humayun Saeed (cameo appearance in screen credits)
- Mohammed Hanif (guest appearance)
- Suhaee Abro (appearance in the song "Kaun Hai Ye Gustakh" in an opening scene)
- Vajdan Shah (appearance in the song "Kaun Hai Ye Gustakh" in an opening scene)
Soundtrack
[edit]The music album was released on 6 August 2015, at a Blue Carpet event held at Nueplex Cinema, Karachi by distributors Geo Entertainment and Geo Films.[11] The soundtrack, including background score, sound mixing, editing and original songs, was composed by Jamal Rahman of True Brew Records.[12] Khoosat, who hired Rahman after hearing his work for Mira Nair's The Reluctant Fundamentalist, said, "I want to make it yours and run with it."[13] Three of the four songs are taken from famous poets, including Majeed Amjad, Mirza Ghalib and Indian Punjabi poet Shiv Kumar Batalvi. One song was written by Muhammad Hanif.[citation needed] One song of the film, sung by Ustad Salamt Ali Nazar, was neither revealed nor announced at the launch.[13] The soundtrack was praised for its classical genre, strong lyrics and soulful music composition.[14]
Track listing
[edit]No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Kaun Hai Yeh Gustakh" | Majeed Amjad | Javed Bashir | 2:46 |
2. | "Aah Ko Chahiye" | Mirza Ghalib | Ali Sethi | 4:12 |
3. | "Kya Hoga" | Muhammad Hanif | Zeb Bangash, Ali Sethi | 3:44 |
4. | "Mehram Dilaan De Mahi" | Shiv Kumar Batalvi | Meesha Shafi | 3:54 |
Release
[edit]Initially the film was scheduled to release in late 2014 but was postponed due to delays in post-production.[15] The first teaser trailer was released on 6 August 2015,[16] for limited special screening.[17] The official trailer was released online on 29 August 2015.[18] Manto was released on 11 September 2015 in Pakistan under the banners of Geo Films.[19] Before theatrical release in the US, the film was screened at three of eight Ivy League institutions, including Harvard University, Columbia University, Yale University and the University of California, Berkeley between 16 and 25 October.[20]
Reception
[edit]Box Office
[edit]Below is the film's Weekly breakdown..
Week One.. 1.58cr
Week Two.. 1.77cr
Week Three.. 67lacs
Week Four + Week Five.. 57lacs
Week Six.. 20lacs
Week Seven*.. 11lacs
Week Eight Onward.. 15lacs
Total.. 5.03cr
Critical reception
[edit]The film has been positively received by critics, with Dawn's Mehreen Hasan calling it "A darkly perfect biopic".[21] Blasting News' Adnan Murad stated, "With an interestingly intricate premise, 'Manto' depicts the life of an accomplished writer of the subcontinent. The movie clearly rests on the shoulders of supremely talented Sarmad, who eloquently plays Manto."[22] Galaxy Lollywood gave it 4.4 out of 5 stars, calling it "As big of a must watch for every Pakistani as perhaps Jamil Dehlavi's Jinnah was."[23]
Accolades
[edit]Ceremony | Won | Nominated |
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15th Lux Style Awards [24] |
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2nd Galaxy Lollywood Awards[25] |
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2nd ARY Film Awards |
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Ceremony | Won |
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Jaipur International Film Festival |
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TV series
[edit]In 2012, before developing the film, a TV series based on the life and literary work of Saadat Hassan Manto, titled Main Manto, was made. It had a total of 20 episodes and was made with the same cast and production as the film. Both the film and the television series were directed by Sarmad Khoosat, who also played the title character.[26] Playwright Shahid Nadeem served as a screenwriter and Babar Javed produced the serial and film under A & B Entertainment at Geo Films. The series was scheduled to release in 2012, but was put on hold for the film production.[27] Later it aired in November 2017 on Geo Entertainment with 18 episodes.
See also
[edit]- Manto (2018 film), Indian biographical film of the writer
- List of Pakistani films of 2015
- List of highest-grossing Pakistani films
References
[edit]- ^ "The biopic "Manto" is releasing on 11 September". Zeeshan Mahmood. Galaxy Lollywood. 8 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Manto, a film on the iconic writer". The Express Tribune. 17 June 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Saadat Manto comes to life in biopic 'Manto'". The Express Tribune. 9 June 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "See the literary genius brought to life in the first look of Pakistani film on Manto". Scroll.in. 18 August 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
- ^ "Manto everywhere but what manto is all abou". Geo TV. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Must watch: Literary genius Manto comes to life in much-awaited biopic". Mehreen Hassan. 7 August 2015. Retrieved 24 August 2015.
- ^ "'Manto' trailer: The story of Pakistan's most iconic writer comes on big screen". IBN Live. 1 September 2015. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
- ^ "Most awaited film of the year Manto's releasing on 11th September". Geo TV. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Manto, the Film". Shabnama. 8 November 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Mahira Khan in a never-seen-before avatar in Manto". The Express Tribune. 4 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ ""Manto" features soulful songs, packing all the ingredients to be described as classic". Aag TV. 10 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "True Brew Records Score Sarmad Khoosat Film, 'Manto'-Soundtrack Features Meesha Shafi". Kool Mu. Zone. 28 August 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ a b "Manto's soundtrack: Weird, dark and expressionist". The Express Tribune. 5 September 2013. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Manto packs soulful soundtrack". Geo Music. 20 April 2015. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Manto' release pushed until after World Cup". Dawn news. 14 January 2014. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "'Manto' set to release on Sept 11". The News. 7 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Raising the curtain on a reclusive Manto". Tribune.pk. 7 August 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Manto trailer: The biopic of Pakistani author looks as intriguing as the subject". First Post (India). 3 September 2015. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
- ^ "Movie "Manto" by Geo Films to be Released in September 2015". Brand Synario. 25 July 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ^ "Manto goes Ivy League". The Express Tribune. 18 October 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
- ^ "manto-lives-in-sarmad-khoosats-darkly-perfect-biopic-a-great-writer-gets-his-due". Dawn News. 16 September 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
- ^ "manto-movie-review-an-upsettingly-accomplished-piece-of-art-00554455.html". Blasting News. 12 September 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
- ^ "manto review a feather in sarmad khoosats cap a success at making him peoples manto". Galaxy Lollywood. 14 September 2015. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
- ^ "Complete list of winners of 15th LUX Style Awards 2016".
- ^ Lollywood, Galaxy (13 February 2016). "Galaxy Lollywood Awards 2016 (Winners)".
- ^ "Sarmad Sultan Khoosat is directing a new drama serial Manto". beingpakistani.com. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
- ^ ""Mein Manto" – a drama on Saadat Hasan Manto's life". The Express Tribune. 28 November 2012. Retrieved 4 April 2013.
External links
[edit]- 2015 films
- 2015 biographical drama films
- Pakistani biographical drama films
- Films about writers
- Films based on television series
- Drama films based on actual events
- Films set in Karachi
- Films set in Lahore
- Geo Films films
- Films set in 1934
- Films set in 1955
- Films directed by Sarmad Khoosat
- Saadat Hasan Manto
- 2015 comedy-drama films
- 2010s Urdu-language films
- Urdu-language Pakistani films