Sultana
Sultana Begum
Born
Sultana Begum

(1910-02-10)10 February 1910
Surat, Bombay Presidency, British India
Died19 September 1990(1990-09-19) (aged 80)
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Occupations
  • Actress
  • Producer
Years active1922 – 1962
SpouseSeth Razzaq (husband)
ChildrenJamila Razzaq (daughter)
Parent(s)Fatma Begum (mother)
Nawab Sidi Ibrahim Muhammad Yakut Khan III (father)
RelativesWaqar Hasan (son-in-law)
Zubeida (sister)
Rhea Pillai (great-niece)

Sultana, also known as Sultana Razzaq, was one of the earliest film actresses from India who acted both in silent films and later in sound films.[1] She was one of the most popular actress during 1920s, 1930s and 1940s in Indian Cinema in both silent films and later in the talkies.[2] She was the daughter of India's first female film director, Fatma Begum.[3] She was the elder sister of Zubeida a leading actress of India's first talkie film Alam Ara in 1931.[1]

Early life

Born in 1910 at Surat city of Gujarat at western India in British India, Sultana was the daughter of Nawab Sidi Ibrahim Muhammad Yakut Khan III of Sachin State and Fatma Begum.[3] She had two sisters, Zubeida and Shehzadi, both actresses. She was among the few girls who entered films at a tender age during a time when it was not considered an appropriate profession for girls from respectable families.[3]

Career

Sultana was a popular actress in the silent movie era, usually cast in romantic roles.[1] She started her career as actress in film Veer Abhimanyu (1922) and later performed in several silent films. Later, she also acted in talkie movies. When India was partitioned in 1947, she migrated to Pakistan with her husband, a wealthy man named Seth Razzaq. Her daughter, Jamila Razzaq, also became an actress with her encouragement. She produced a film in Pakistan, named Hum Ek Hain (1961), written by famous scriptwriter, Fayyaz Hashmi. The film was partly shot in colour, which was rare those days, but it failed miserably and Sultana stopped producing any films afterwards but later the film became popular among the audience the film received critical acclaim for its script and performances.[4] Its reputation has shifted over the following years, and many critics now consider the film to be a masterpiece and one of the best films of the 1960s.[4][1]

She continued to remain active and worked as a producer in some films and then as her daughter's dress-designer when Jamila started working in films.[4]

Personal life

She married businessman Seth Razzaq and together they had a daughter named Jamila a popular actress during 1950s and 1960s in the cinema of Pakistan.[4] Sultana's daughter, Jamila Razzaq, married the well known Pakistani cricketer Waqar Hasan, who is the brother of filmmaker Iqbal Shehzad. He runs a business under the name National Foods at Karachi.[1]

Death

Sultana died at her family's home in Karachi in 1990 at Pakistan and was laid to rest in a Karachi Graveyard.[4]

Filmography

Silent Movies

Year Title Producer Role Notes
1922 Veer Abhimaniyu Star Films Uttari Debut Movie[5]
1924 Gul Bakavali Kohinoor & Imperial
Kalyan Khajina Kohinoor & Imperial A Fair Maiden [6]
Kala Naag Kohinoor & Imperial
Manorama Kohinoor & Imperial
Prithvi Vallabh Ashoka Pictures Jakkala Devi
Sati Sardarba Saraswati Film Company
1925 Indra Sabha Kohinoor & Imperial
1926 Bulbul-e-Paristan Fatma Films Company
1927 Balidan Orient Pictures Corporation
1928 Chandravali Victoria Fatima Film Company
1929 Kanak Tara Fatima Film Company
Young India Indulal Yagnik
1930 Brand Of Fate Imperial Film Company
Glory Of India Ranjit Film Company
Revence Imperial Film Company
The Comet Surya F. Co.
1931 Wages of Sin Sharda Mysore Pictures Corporation

Talkie Movies

Year Title Producer Role Notes
1931 Milkmaid Ranjit Film Company First Indian Talkie Movie of Sultana
Kamar-Al-Zaman Imperial Film Company Maimoonah
1932 Balwant Bhatt Balwant Bhatt
1933 Intekam Amar Mullick
Shan-e-Subhan Brahma Film Company
1934 Afghan Abla Kumar M.
Amirzadi Kumar M.
Saubhagya Laxmi Kumar M.
1935 Behan Ka Prem Prosperity Films
Bidrohee East India Film Company
Kamroo Desh Ki Kamini Kumar M.
Maut Ka Toofan All India Movie
Step Mother East India Film Company
1936 Hoor-E-Samundar Vishnu Cine
Sagar Ki Kanya Vijay Pictures
Devdas Pramathesh Barua Parvati
1938 Talwar Ka Dhani
1939 Indramalati
1940 Usha Haran Popular Pictures
1949 Girdhar Gopal Ki Mira

Producer

Year Title Notes
1961 Hum Ek Hain Pakistani Movie

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sultana". Cineplot.com. Archived from the original on 18 June 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  2. ↑ Willemen, Paul (2014). Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema. Taylor & Francis. pp. 241–242. ISBN 9781135943189.
  3. 1 2 3 Nazir, Asjad. "Lighting Up the Big Screen."Eastern Eye, 26 July 2013, pp. 21-33. ProQuest.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "سلطانہ ہندوستان کی مشہور فلمی اداکارہ میں سے ایک ہیں". Weekly Nigar Karachi (Golden Jubilee Number): 118. 2000.
  5. ↑ "Sultana – Filmography". Cineplot.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
  6. ↑ Garga, Bhagavan Das (1996). So Many Cinemas. Eminence Designs. p. 32,43,52. ISBN 9788190060219. Retrieved 18 September 2012.
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