Anjuman

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Anjuman (Urdu: انجمن) is a Pakistani film actress. She was one of the most successful Punjabi film heroines of Pakistan during the 1980s, Anjuman came from Multan to Lahore. Her first appearance was, however, in the Urdu film, Waadey ki Zanjeer (1979). She had major roles in Sher Khan and Chan Varyam and played a side-role in Sala Sahib. All three films were diamond jubilee hits and were released on the same day, a unique record, which she shared with her partner hero Sultan Rahi, her playback voice (singer) Melody Queen Madam Noor Jehan, and musician Wajahat Attre. Anjuman was a darling of the relatively less educated class, which went to the cinema frequently. She could dance according to their taste and she had the figure of a traditional Punjabi Mutyaar, which suited Punjabis at the time.

Anjuman married an income tax officer by the name of Mubeen Malik, quit films, and moved to the United Kingdom. According to gossip, Malik soon grew fed up with her lifestyle; he was shocked at his wife's "fast" life, and slowly but surely bickering and fighting became the tone of their marriage. During this time, the one man industry Sultan Rahi was brought down by a murder on the National Highway. Lollywood was deprived of its most famous star, and the Punjabi film industry virtually ground to a halt, crushed by the loss of the great Rahi.

Anjuman and Malik meanwhile managed to tolerate each other; they had a couple of children, and life went on like this until they were old enough to manage without her constant care. Anjuman's craving to work in front of the camera returned gradually. Her comeback as heroine in 1999 was not successful. However, she signed a couple of films, and her return vehicle was one with her in the title role in the film Chaudrani. The adoring masses welcomed their beloved Queen home and lifted Chaudrani to considerable success upon its release.

Anjuman was back, but soon the golden touch began to fade. Anjuman, however, perceived Chaudrani's success as vindication of everything she had planned. She refused any further character roles, opting only for solo heroine projects. Then she jacked up her price to a lofty Rs. 300,000. She felt that she was in a position to be calling all the shots, but in any film industry you are as good as your last hit and she was soon to taste the vagaries of stardom. Her next release was Jag Mahi, opposite similarly dinosauric Ghulam Mohiuddin, in 2000. It had a very tepid response and barely lasted a few weeks playing to largely empty halls. Anjuman's next release was going to prove a litmus test of sorts and this she failed disastrously. The film Peengan opposite Saud was met with derision.

Audiences started shouting slogans of Maa Puttar (Mother and Son) and Buddhee Ghori Laal Lagaam during the film. Yet, she refused to change her stance on character roles, as well as the size of her pay check. Suddenly, the industry began to mutter about Anjuman being like a kiss of death if she was in the romantic lead.

There was much depression in her household as news spread from the industry that distributors had made an announcement that they would not be handling any film starring Anjuman for fear of financial loss. The producers with whom she had already signed suffered enormous losses. A few films which had been partly completed were recalled by the producers and shorn of any Anjuman involvement.

In the film Badmaash, for which Anjuman had already canned two songs and numerous scenes, she was abruptly dropped and replaced by upcoming starlet Noor. The producer felt they would be better off cutting Anjuman, and their costs, rather than going ahead with Anjuman as the leading lady.

Further news arrived that Anjuman's scenes from the film Badmaash tey Qanoon had also been dropped and edited out of the film, and that she had been replaced by Nargis. This was the final straw for Anjuman, the humiliation proving too much to take. She announced her immediate retirement, that she was just hanging around to complete her on hand assignments, and that she would shortly be leaving Pakistan altogether for a life of anonymity in UK where her husband Mubeen Malik owned a flat. Her final two movies were Jatti Da Vair in 2000 [1] and Ek Dhee Punjab Di (Daughter of Punjab), which is a title befitting a final Anjuman effort. Her glittering career ended on a sour note; however, Anjuman will always remain the pride of Multan.

Her departure may have been a crushing blow to many of her die hard fans, who admired the thumkas (dance maneuvers) of Anjuman. In the mid 1980's, the extent of the dominance of Sultan Rahi, Mustafa Qureshi and Anjuman was such that a film was not considered a viable project unless these three elements were present. Film after film after film saw the three stars appear, with different names, but merely repeating their roles from the previous efforts. None the less, the public lapped it up and all three became icons of an era. Other Punjabi film actresses of the era were Neeli, Reema and Saima.

[edit] Filmography

• Mufat Bar
• Shan
• Dostana
• Sahib Jee
• Qudrat
• Dehshat Khan
• Lal Toofan
• Sholey
• Dhee Rani
• Qismat
• Mendi
• Wadera
• Dulari
• Janbaaz
• Roti
• Mela
• Mazdoor
• Insaniyat key Dushman
• Kali Charn
• Chaudrani