Journalism of Courage
K Asif's Mughal-e-Azam, considered the greatest Indian film ever, completes 60 years today. The timeless love story of Salim-Anarkali and the tale of a son rebelling against his emperor father has not only had the biggest pop culture imprint on Indian audience, but continues to be a representative of Indian cinema internationally. Here's celebrating the greatness of this Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Madhubala classic with some pictures. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
Mughal-e-Azam follows the love story between Mughal Prince Salim and Anarkali, a courtesan-dancer. Salim's father, Emperor Akbar, disapproves of the relationship, which leads to a war between father and son. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
K Asif began developing Mughal-e-Azam in 1944 after he read a play about Emperor Akbar's reign. The film, however, took 16 years to get completed due to multiple complications, from change in cast to reshooting. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
Mughal-e-Azam was first planned with Sapru, Chandramohan and Nargis as Salim, Akbar and Anarkali. K Asif had even begun shooting the film but it was shelved following the demise of Chandramohan in 1949 after three years of filming. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
Mughal-e-Azam was then recast with Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Madhubala as Akbar, Salim and Anarkali, respectively. Dilip Kumar and Madhubala's stunning chemistry immortalised the tragic love story of Salim and Anarkali. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
Mughal-e-Azam was the most expensive film made at that time. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
Mughal-e-Azam is considered a benchmark for epics in the country. It epitomised grandeur in every sense, from its sets to elaborate costumes, spectacle-like war sequences and its countless dramatic moments. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
The war sequences used 2000 camels, 4000 horses and 8000 men, most of the latter being real soldiers from the army. Prithviraj wore real armour, real weapons were crafted and real jewellery used. The best tailors, embroiders, jewellers, shoemakers and other craftsmen from across the country were employed. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
Mughal-e-Azam went on to break every box office record and is still considered one of the highest-grossing Bollywood films of all time. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
In 2004, the film became the first full-length Indian feature film colourised for a theatrical re-release. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
K Asif’s son Akbar Asif presented the screenplay of the film to the Oscars library to mark its 60th anniversary. (Source: Photo by Express archives)
