The magnum opus, directed by K Asif, is still a captivating watch, 61 years since its release in 1960. Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar and Madhubala became synonymous with their onscreen personas – Akbar, Salim and Anarkali. The screenplay of the film, which hit the screens in India on August 5, 1960, was crafted by a team comprising Aman, Kamal Amrohi, Wajahat Mirza, Ehsan Rizvi as well as director K. Asif.
Salim and Anarkali, who play star-crossed lovers, in this feature film, also became the flag-bearers of incomplete love stories and tragic romances . The chemistry between then-real-life couple, Dilip Kumar and Madhubala unravelled beautifully on screen through Salim and Anarkali.
In 1960, the film had an all-India release in 150 theatres simultaneously. A digitally-colourised version of the epic was re-released in theatres in 2004, bringing out the beautiful colours of the places like the beautifully designed Sheesh Mahal.
Last year on its 60th anniversary, director K Asif’s son Akbar Asif presented the screenplay of the film to the Oscars library in Hollywood. Three versions of the legendary screenplay – in Hindi, Roman text and English translation – are now available at the Margaret Herrick Library, a world-renowned reference and research collection of the Academy devoted to the history and development of the motion picture as an art form and an industry.