Sultan Rahi
ﺳﻠﻄﺎﻥ ﺭﺍﮨﯽ
Born
Muhammad Sultan Khan

(1938-06-24)24 June 1938
Rawalpindi, Punjab, British India
Died9 January 1996(1996-01-09) (aged 57)
Gujranwala, Punjab, Pakistan
Cause of deathMurder
NationalityPakistani
Occupations
  • Actor
  • producer
  • screenwriter
Years active1956–1996
Spouse(s)Shaheen (divorce)
Naseem Sultan
Children5[1]
AwardsNigar Awards

Sultan Rahi (Urdu: ﺳﻠﻄﺎﻥ ﺭﺍﮨﯽ; June 24, 1938 – January 9, 1996) was a Pakistani actor, producer and screenwriter.

He established himself as one of the leading and most successful actors of Pakistani and Punjabi cinema,[2] and received a reputation as Pakistan's "Clint Eastwood".[3]

During a career spanning 40 years, he acted in some 703 Punjabi films and 100 Urdu films, winning around 160 awards.[4]

Rahi earned two Nigar Awards for his work in Babul (1971) and Basheera (1972).[5][6]

In 1975 he portrayed the character of Maula Jatt in Wehshi Jatt, winning his third Nigar Award. He reprised the role in its sequel Maula Jatt.

Some of his other films include Sher Khan, Chan Veryam, Kaley Chore, The Godfather, Sharif Badmash and Wehshi Gujjar.[2][3]

Life and career

According to Mushtaq Gazdar Rahi was born in Rawalpindi, British India, in 1938.[7] Mazhar Iqbal of Pakmag further notes that he was from an Urdu-speaking family, who had migrated to Rawalpindi from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh and that he was born in Muzaffarnagar as well.[8]

His father, Subedar Major Abdul Majeed, was a retired officer from the British Indian Army.[9]

He began his film career in 1956 as a guest actor in the film Baghi. His first breakthrough came with the film Wehshi Jatt (1975). This was the unofficial prequel to Maula Jatt (1979). Maula Jatt was released on 11 February 1979, which became his most successful Pakistani film. His other works include Behram Daku (1980), Sher Khan (1981), Sala Sahib and Ghulami (1985).

Sultan Rahi appeared in key roles in over 535 films.[10]

Family

He had five children, of which one, Haider Sultan, is also an actor.[11]

Death

On 9 January 1996, Rahi and his friend Ahsan, a film director, were travelling from Islamabad to Lahore on the main highway in Pakistan, Grand Trunk Road. Their vehicle got a flat tyre near Aimanabad Chungi, not far from Gujranwala.[12]

While they were installing a spare tyre, thieves approached the vehicle and tried to rob them. Rahi and his friend were both shot; Rahi eventually succumbed to his wounds, dying as a result.[3][13][14][15]

Legacy

Rahi worked in the Punjabi film industry for over four decades.[16]

He was the highest paid Pakistani actor of his time.[3]

He was named in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most prolific actor.[17]

Director Altaf Hussain told media about his death and added that "I think such actors are only born once. He was a trendsetter – his films were copied in other countries but no one was able to perform like him."[18]

Bahar Begum reacted by saying: "I remember Sultan always saying that this industry will miss him when he’s gone but at the time, I don’t think we fully understood what he meant, but he truly proved his worth, There was only one Sutlan Rahi in Lollywood and there will always be one Sultan Rahi – no one can replace him".[19]

Mustafa Qureshi commented that "Our onscreen chemistry was unique in a number of ways. Our pairing was the most popular film partnership throughout Lollywood's history, It’s true, there will never be another Sultan Rahi, ever. Everything he earned was a result of sheer hard work and talent".[20]

Film director Pervaiz Rana added: "Even though we are still making Punjabi films and many new heroes have entered and left the industry, I don’t think the golden era of Sultan Rahi will ever come back. His dialogues are etched in our hearts and memories, It’s the country’s love for Sultan that continues to reflect in his pictures and posters being plastered in shops and on buses."[20]

Awards and honours

Nigar Awards

Won

Filmography

Bibliography

Zāhid ʻAkāsī, Sult̤ān Rāhī : Pākistānī filmon̲ kā sult̤ān, Lahore : Jumhuri Publications, 2019 (reprint of the 2010 edition), 169 p. Biography.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Pakistan Artists Database Entry for Haidar Sultan". Pakistan Film Magazine. Retrieved 11 August 2020
  2. 1 2 Singh, Pashaura; Fenech, Louis E. (2014). The Oxford Handbook of Sikh Studies. Oxford University Press. pp. 488–. ISBN 9780199699308.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Abdul Kareem (8 January 2016). "January 9, 1996: Pakistani actor Sultan Rahi shot dead". Gulf News. Retrieved 6 June 2019.
  4. ↑ M. Saeed Awan (26 October 2014), "The dark side of Lollywood", Dawn News. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  5. 1 2 Sultan Rahi's Nigar Award (1971) on cineplot.com website Retrieved 6 June 2019
  6. 1 2 Sultan Rahi's Nigar Award (1972) on cineplot.com Retrieved 6 June 2019
  7. ↑ Mushtaq Gazdar, Pakistan Cinema, 1947-1997, Oxford University Press (1997), p. 132
  8. ↑ "Sultan Rahi - Film hero". pakmag.net. Retrieved 31 October 2023.
  9. ↑ "Honouring Sultan Rahi, the 'Clint Eastwood' of Lollywood". tribune.com.pk. 9 January 2021. Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  10. ↑ Malik, Iftikhar Haider (2006). Culture and Customs of Pakistan. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 182–. ISBN 9780313331268.
  11. ↑ "PTV to Commence Long Plays Again, First Play Main Woh Aur Main Underway!" (2 November 2018), HipInPakistan. Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  12. ↑ "When 'Maula Jutt' was killed; Death anniversary of Sultan Rahi – Dunya News". dunyanews.tv.
  13. ↑ "Remembering Sultan Rahi on his 24th death anniversary". 9 January 2020.
  14. ↑ "Death Anniversary of Sultan Rahi Observed".
  15. ↑ "The mysterious murder of Sultan Rahi and other Lollywood tragedies". 9 January 2017.
  16. ↑ "The heroes who shaped Pakistan's film industry".
  17. ↑ "22nd death anniversary of Sultan Rahi observed". 9 January 2018.
  18. ↑ "The 'Sultan' of Lollywood: Rahi remembered on death anniversary". 9 January 2019.
  19. ↑ "Sultan Rahi being remembered on his 22nd death anniversary". 9 January 2018.
  20. 1 2 "Lollywood still trying to recover from Sultan Rahi's loss". tribune.com. 10 January 2017.
  21. ↑ "Nigar Awards (1972 - 1986)". The Hot Spot Online website. 5 January 2003. Archived from the original on 25 July 2008. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
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