Qazi Khadim is renowned literary figure in Sindh, whose literary works including, Adbi Safar, Galhyun Khutyun Na Aahen, Khulyal Akhyun Ja Sapna, Adhooro dastan, Miti Mai Milawat, Hyderabad Sapnan Jo Sheher, are well known among Sindhi readers. His latest book Cinema Cinema is compilation of his memories regarding films that he saw in each decade of his life, particularly when the trend of going to the movies was at its pinnacle. Cinema Cinema, book by Qazi Khadim, discusses the era when films were appreciated by people of all socioeconomic backgrounds. The author has combined recollections from his past in his book, when film-theatres were the sole source of amusement and films had a huge influence on their spectators, who by the time were able to discriminate between good and evil, hero and villain, anti-hero and vamps. Citizens of all classes were welcomed and seated in the cinema auditorium; the sole criterion was money. The more you paid, the more likely you were to be placed next to an elite person, as most of them sat in the gallery. Despite this fact, everyone in the hall enjoyed, grieved and sobbed together, there was no class division. Everybody hummed along to their favourite song. Pakeezah directed by Kamal Amrohi was an Indian film that inspired and changed people’s lives. Most individuals were inspired by the film and married prostitutes. There are several situations in our neighborhood where prostitutes are now living happily and being treated with dignity. Qazi Khadim has relived the days when Hyderabad had more than 20 cinemas – New Majestic, Nishat Cinema, Capitol Cinema, Qaiser, Noor Mehal, Elite Cinema, Firdos Cinema, Shalimar, Odin, Shams, Rahat, Venus Cinema, Bambino Cinema, Shaab Cinema, Chandni Cinema, Capri, HillTop Cinema, Koh-i-Noor, Chiragh Mehal, Shaheen, Sangeet – and how he and his friends and family used to go to different cinemas to view films from Hindi cinema, Pakistani cinema and Hollywood films, while providing a brief summary of each film. He goes on to say that while underprivileged people could watch movies back then, this sort of entertainment is now solely available to the upper class. People who couldn’t read or write at the time learnt about 1,000-page novels like war and peace through film. As well as other films that have been adapted and recreated in Bollywood. For Example: Shyam’s Shabistan was adapted from The Prisoner of Zenda, Sangdil from Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre, Dil Diya Dard Liya from Wuthering Heights. Through adaptations of those stories, even the most illiterate individual became acquainted with the plots of Dickens, Hardy, Dumas, Tolstoy, Hemingway, Boris Pasternak, DH Lawrence, EM Forster, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s character Sherlock Holmes and Ian Fleming’s James Bond. Ben-Hur, Lawrence of Arabia, Ryan’s Daughter, The Great Escape, Come September, Where Eagles Dare, The Guns of Navarone, Mackennas Gold, Von Ryan Express, to name a few films he cited in his book, had previously been recommended to me by my father, so there was nothing new for me to learn about the films and their performers, except bundle of trivial information about the films and their actors. Although the author is inaccurate in saying that Dev Anand worked in Pyaasa, he also stated that Raj Kapoor did not ask a fee for Andaaz because he wanted to work with Dilip Kumar, which is an errant lie. Raj Kapoor, by the way, demanded Rs 15,000, although Dilip was not a megastar at the time, and they never worked together again. I believe these were rumours from the period that the author cited, sans the research. Pakistani cine-goers were heavily influenced by Hindi films. There were some great films, including Awaara, Shree 420, Pyaasa, Kaaghaz Ke Phool, Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, Chaudvin Ka Chand, Madhumati, Sujata, Do Bigha Zamin, Do Ankhen Barah Haath, Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai, Mera Naam Joker, Teesri Kasam, Hum Log, Achut Kanya, Andaaz, Aan, Mughal-e-Azam, Parchhain, Zabak, Mahal, Barsaat, Chori Chori, Baiju Bawra and Sangdil. The film industry was home to some of the biggest names in acting, including Raj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Prithviraj Kapoor, Guru Dutt, V Shantaram, Balraj Sahni, Om Prakash, Ashok Kumar, Kishore Kumar, Dev Anand, Pradeep Kumar, Ajit, Bharat Bhushan, Pran, Johnny Walker, Bhagwan Dada and actresses like Nargis, Madhubala, Geeta Bali, Nutan, Nimi, Shyama, Waheeda Rehman, Saira Banu, Vyjayanthimala, Padmini, Bina Rai and Asha Parekh. Cigarette kiosks, hair salons and teashops would have posters of their favourite films, actors and actresses. These thespians lip synched the songs under the voice of Mohammad Rafi, Mukesh, Saigal, Talat Mehmood, Hemant Kumar, Manna Dey, Kishore Kumar, Lata, Asha, Geeta Dutt, Suraiya, Shamshad Begum, who all sang under the composition of legendary composers like SD Burman, RD Burman, Naushad, Shankar-Jaikishan, Laxmikant-Pyarelal, Salil Chowdhury, OP Nayyar. Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak, Tapan Sinha, Mrinal Sen, Bimal Roy, Mehboob, K Asif, Guru Dutt, Raj Kapoor, V Shataram, BR Chopra, Kamal Amrohi changed the history of Indian Cinema through their direction and stories that centred on that period of sufferings and challenges. With the competition against Indian cinema, Khadim in his book, has also share the strong and strident era of Pakistani industry, when the movies were made in that age; such as Street 77, Daal Mai Kala, Raat Ke Rahi, Khamosh Raho, Insaaf Aur Qanoon, Dupatta, Nokar, Saheli, Hameeda, Ghulam, Intzaar, Anarkali, Koel, Shehri Babu, Qatil, Pengaan, Kismat, Chakori, Akhri Station, Darshan, Raaz, Zamna Kya Kahega, Khirki, and others conveying the message of social reforms and longing for beloved followed with one of the finest tunes, songs and music sung at that time by legendary singers like Mehdi Hassan, Noor Jehan, Ahmed Rushdi, Inayat Hussain Bhatti and actor of those time Habib, Iqbal Yusuf, Darpan, Waheed Murad, Mohammad Ali, Sudhir, Nadeeem, Sultan Rahi, Mustafa Qureshi, Agha Talish, Javed Shaikh, and actresses Noor Jehan, Rehana, Swaran Lata, Asha Posley, Shamim Ara, Zeba, Shabnam, Neelo, Nayar Sultana, Musrat Nazeer, Sabiya and directors Yunus Malik, Khwaja Sarfaraz, Khalil Qaiser, Zafar Shabab, Riaz Shahid, Nazir Ahmed Khan, Ehtesham, Shabab Kiranwi, Amin Malik, Sibtain Fazli, and many more were the part of Golden Age of Pakistani cinema. After war of 1965 Indians films were banned which saw the boom in Pakistani industry. Songs, compositions, choreography and lyrics by the best poets of the era, including Sahir Ludhianvi, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Hasrat Jaipuri, Kaifi Azmi, Shailendra, Shakeel Badyuni, Kavi Pradeep, Gulzar, and Javed Akhtar, were among the features that set Hindi cinema apart from Hollywood. At Chai Hotels, people hummed and listened to radio broadcasts of songs like “Awara Hun,” “Janey Wo Kaise,” “Dil Tadap Tadap Kay Keh Raha Hai Aa Bhi Ja,” “Janey Kahan Mera Jigar,” and “Ye Raat Ye Chandni Phir Kahan.” Even among listeners of today’s generation, songs like “Aye Malik Tere Bande Hum,” “Honton Pe Sachaye Rehti Hai,” “Kisi ki Muskrahatun Pe Ho Nisar,” “Jinhen Naaz Hai Hind Par WO Kahan Hain,” and “Ye Dunya Agar Mil Bhi Jaye Tou Kya Hai” left a profound and depressing impression. This book is comprised for film enthusiast, and only they can comprehend the essence of era of ’60s, especially those people who had seated in 20 different cinemas of Hyderabad and of our generation who had predilection, especially, towards black and white movies. Without prior understanding of movies, this book may be tedious for some, yet it is unique in its field. The author has sadly detailed the loss and destruction of theatres replaced by skyscrapers, as well as the demise of our industry. The darker side of the film industry has also been written about by Qazi Khadim, who shared a story from Naushad’s autobiography about how Naushad was shocked to see Rajkumari during the filming of “Sangarsh” because she had come to audition for chorus girls due to poverty. Rajkumari was once a well-known singer in India, and directors would approach her and open her car doors. On the Awaara set, he also related the tales of Raj, Nargis, and Shammi Kapoor. There is only one issue in this book that I think should be rectified through next edited version and that is repetition of names of films and actors that becomes an exhausting process for readers and the author has only mentioned films that were screened in theatres, which means you will not be exposed to the great directors of world cinema such as Ingmar Bergman, Satyajit Ray, Andrei Tarkovsky, Vittorio De Sica, Akira Kurosawa, Yasujiro Ozu, Masaki Kobayashi, Federico Fellini, Michelangelo Antonioni, Jean Luc Godard, Robert Bresson, Carl Theodor Dryer, and others. With the exception of few Indian directors, the majority of the films featured in his book are only recognised with actors and actresses. Qazi Khadim’s entire book is a narrative rendition of cinema and its impact on his life. He has done an excellent job of representing the bygone era of film, which will bring emotions and memories to those who have lived through it. A significant and magnificent work. The writer is a student at Sindh University and a film critic. He can be reached at saqlainali878@gmail.com