Release CalendarDVD & Blu-ray ReleasesTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsIn TheatersComing SoonMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysLGBTQ+ Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Ankur: The Seedling

Original title: Ankur
  • 19741974
  • 2h 11m
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
Shabana Azmi in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
  • Drama
Belonging to a lower caste, Lakshmi and her deaf-mute husband Kishtayya serve the landlord's son, Surya. When Surya's young wife finds out about his affair with Lakshmi, they all find themse... Read allBelonging to a lower caste, Lakshmi and her deaf-mute husband Kishtayya serve the landlord's son, Surya. When Surya's young wife finds out about his affair with Lakshmi, they all find themselves at crossroads.Belonging to a lower caste, Lakshmi and her deaf-mute husband Kishtayya serve the landlord's son, Surya. When Surya's young wife finds out about his affair with Lakshmi, they all find themselves at crossroads.
IMDb RATING
7.8/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Shyam Benegal
  • Writers
    • Shyam Benegal(story and scenario)
    • Satyadev Dubey(dialogue)
  • Stars
    • Shabana Azmi
    • Sadhu Meher
    • Anant Nag
Top credits
  • Director
    • Shyam Benegal
  • Writers
    • Shyam Benegal(story and scenario)
    • Satyadev Dubey(dialogue)
  • Stars
    • Shabana Azmi
    • Sadhu Meher
    • Anant Nag
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 12User reviews
    • 7Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 4 wins & 4 nominations

    Photos13

    Shabana Azmi in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Anant Nag in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Shabana Azmi in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Shabana Azmi in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Sadhu Meher in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Shabana Azmi and Anant Nag in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Shabana Azmi and Anant Nag in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Shabana Azmi and Anant Nag in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Anant Nag in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Shabana Azmi in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Shabana Azmi in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Shabana Azmi
    Shabana Azmi
    • Laxmias Laxmi
    Sadhu Meher
    • Kishtayyaas Kishtayya
    Anant Nag
    Anant Nag
    • Suryaas Surya
    Priya Tendulkar
    Priya Tendulkar
    • Saruas Saru
    Aga Mohamed Hussain
    • Sheik Chandas Sheik Chand
    Mirza Qadirali Baig
    • Surya's fatheras Surya's father
    Hemant Jeshwant Rao
    Satyanarayan
    Sesham Raju
    Hameed Rashid
    Aslam Akhtar
    Syed Yakoob
    Jagat Jeevan
    Prafullata Natu
    Kaleem Siddiqui
    Tulsi Bai
    Subhash Singh
    Ahman Akhtar
    • Director
      • Shyam Benegal
    • Writers
      • Shyam Benegal(story and scenario)
      • Satyadev Dubey(dialogue)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

    More like this

    6.2
    Lathi
    Nishant
    7.6
    Nishant
    Mr. X
    3.7
    Mr. X
    Bhumika
    7.4
    Bhumika
    Mandi
    7.5
    Mandi
    Manthan
    7.6
    Manthan
    Mirch Masala
    7.7
    Mirch Masala
    The Touch
    8.0
    The Touch
    Aakrosh
    7.9
    Aakrosh
    The Seventh Horse of the Sun
    7.9
    The Seventh Horse of the Sun
    Do Bigha Zamin
    8.2
    Do Bigha Zamin
    Ek Doctor Ki Maut
    8.3
    Ek Doctor Ki Maut

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The Director "shyam benegel" collected funds for the movie from local farmers.
    • Connections
      Featured in Century of Cinema: And the Show Goes On: Indian Chapter (1996)

    User reviews12

    Review
    Top review
    Classic of new wave Indian cinema
    Ankur is to my mind one of the very best Hindi films ever made. Unusually for Hindi cinema, it is an entirely realistic film without singing and dancing. Since music is of huge commercial importance to Indian cinema, the pressure on directors to include it tends to be impossible to resist and is a constant problem facing 'serious' Indian film-makers. The late seventies was a very special moment with a concerted attempt by some directors ('New Cinema") to buck the commercial trend, of whom the most important were Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani (who is responsible for the cinematography in Ankur). Ankur was the first and most strikingly successful films of the "New India" movement (which only lasted some five or six years), Nihalani's Aakrosh (1980) being amongst the last. Working with a young cast (who formed a virtual repertory company for the "New Cinema" films and a committed team, Benegal was able to produce one of the freshest and most compelling of films. Without being in the least pretentious or even belonging to that nebulous category 'the art film', Ankur is a realistic drama without concession that managed also to be a significant commercial success. The acting is superb. Shabana Azmi has had a long and glorious career but has, in my view, never been better than in this, her first important role. Anant Nag (an actor who has never entirely received his due) is also as good here as I have ever seen him. Sadhu Meher (as the deaf and dumb husband) very deservedly won a national award for his performance and Priya Tedulkar is chilling as the narrow-minded malicious young wife. Nihalani's camera-work is also exceptional. In all it is one of those rare occasions when brilliant teamwork around a clearly thought-out project results in a near-perfect film.

    For the anecdote: There is a nice moment towards the end of the film where Surya (Anant Nag) is playing records and his wife requests something by Nimmi. Before playing the record, he corrects her by pointing out that the record is in fact by Lata. This is a very typical Benegal touch. Not only does it fix the date of the events (c. 1950) but is at once a comment on Hindi cinema history and on the character of the young wife. 1949 was the key year in establishing the absolute domination of 'playback' singers, notably Lata Mangeshkar whose annus mirabilis this was with massive hit-scores in three films, Barsaat, Mahal and Andaaz. In those days, playback singers were often uncredited and many (like the wife in the film) believed the songs to be sung by the actors and actresses themselves. The reference is particularly sardonic in a film that is itself songless. Nimmi made her début as an actress in Barsaat where she plays a simple mountain girl seduced by a cynical young man from the city and this became her typical role in subsequent films. The wife's preference for Nimmi is therefore a comment on the hypocrisy of her harsh attitude towards Lakshmi in the film.
    helpful•22
    2
    • david-bond-2
    • Mar 2, 2006

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 2, 2019 (India)
    • Country of origin
      • India
    • Language
      • Hindi
    • Also known as
      • Tränen auf heißem Sand
    • Production company
      • Blaze Film Enterprises
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 11 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.37 : 1

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Shabana Azmi in Ankur: The Seedling (1974)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Ankur: The Seedling (1974) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    The Best Movies and Shows to Watch in July
    See the full list
    View image
    Photos
    Hollywood Romances: Our Favorite Couples
    See the full list

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.