Manto (2018)

The film is a biographical account of writer Saadat Hasan Manto's life and is set in 1940s India.

Director:

Nandita Das

Writer:

Nandita Das

Stars:

Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Rasika Dugal, Tahir Raj Bhasin

3 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nawazuddin Siddiqui	...	Saadat Hasan Manto
Rasika Dugal	...	Safia
Tahir Raj Bhasin	...	Shyam
Nazma Ali Shaikh	...	Sarita
Ashwini Giri	...	Sarita's mother
Neeraj Sood	...	Kishori
Purab Kohli	...	Kifaayat
Swanand Kirkire	...	Shahab
Chittaranjan Tripathy	...	Anwar
Vihaan Das Maskara	...	Boy on the bar
Nishith Dadhich	...	Director
Sunil Kamath	...	Cameraman
Priyanka Misal	...	Princess
Suhas Joshi	...	Swami ji
Rishi Kapoor	...	Producer

Storyline

The film follows the most tumultuous four years in the life of Manto and that of the two countries he inhabits - India and Pakistan. In Bombay's seedy-shiny film world, Manto and his stories are widely read and accepted. But as sectarian violence engulfs the nation, Manto makes the difficult choice of leaving his beloved Bombay. In Lahore, he finds himself bereft of friends and unable to find takers for his writings. His increasing alcoholism leads him into a downward spiral. Through all of this, he continues to write prolifically, without dilution. This is the tale of two emerging nations, two faltering cities, and one man who tries to make sense of it all.

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Plot Keywords:

biopic | 

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Genres:

Biography | Drama

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Did You Know?

Trivia

Saadat Hasan Manto's (1912-1955) short stories set during the devastating partition of the Indian subcontinent were his defining works.[19] These irreverent, unflinching but deeply humane stories, earned him the wrath of the British Indian government and later of Pakistan. The stories were deemed obscene by the courts and he spent his last years fighting legal battles to defend his right to write. Today, his work is seen by both scholars and the reading public as one of the most authentic and independent accounts of the human tragedy of those years.

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Connections

Referenced in Raftaar & Nawazuddin Siddiqui: Mantoiyat (2018)

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Soundtracks

Nagri Nagri
Vocals by Shankar Mahadevan
Lyrics by Meeraji
Music by Sneha Khanwalkar

User Reviews

Peering through a time portal back to 1940's India-Pakistan.

My Rating : 8/10

'Manto' as a film transports you to a different world completely. It gives you a sense of the zeitgest of a 1940's recently-partitioned India and Pakistan and the strong religious sentiments of the people at the time. Saadat Hasan Manto was a Pakistani writer, playwright and author and someone who through his writings wanted to give a different perspective.

Nandita Das' direction reminds me of the likes of Guru Dutt and Satyajit Ray. 'Manto' is exquisite, poetic and an intimate character study.

Upar di gur gur di annexe di bedhiyana di moong di daal of di Pakistan and Hindustan of di...Manto.

Brilliant.

Details

Official Sites:

ArtsGuild [Canada]

Country:

India

Language:

Hindi Urdu

Release Date:

21 September 2018 (India)

Also Known As:

Манто

Company Credits

Production Co:

En Compagnie Des Lamas, Filmstoc, HP Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

112 min

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1