Mazhar Khan (19051950) was an actor-producer-director in Indian
Cinema. He was acknowledged for his strong yet natural performances,
best exemplified by his role in V. Shantaram's classic Padosi (1941),
wherein Mazhar, a Muslim, enacted the role of an upper-caste Hindu. He
started his career as a police officer, which he left to study law for
a short period. Abandoning his studies he came to Bombay and started
his career in cinema with the silent film Fatal Garland opposite the
top actress of the time, Ermeline. He became a popular actor, gaining
success in several silent films. During his stint in silent films he
worked with well-established directors like Bhagwati Mishra, Ezra Mir,
Moti P. Bhagnani, R. S. Chowdhary, and M. D. Bhavnani. The magazines
of those days, circa 1940s, compared Mazhar to Hollywood actors like
Paul Muni, Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff.Mazhar Khan made a successful
transition to Talkies with the end of the Silent Era. Nurjehan (1931),
directed by Ezra Mir, was his first Talkie picture. It received a
positive response from the audiences establishing Mazhar as a
profitable and dependable actor. He went on to work with the East
India Film Company in Calcutta and Sagar Movietone, making films like
Sultana, Night Bird, Salima and Sonhera Sansar. He then moved back to
Bombay and worked under Ranjit Movietone. Having established himself
in the different roles he portrayed, he became renowned for he became
renowned for his character depictions while also being respected in
the film industry.He formed his own production company, Asiatic
Pictures under the banner of which he first made Yaad (1942) and then
Pehli Nazar (1945), the latter film referred to as his best
directorial triumph in his obituary. He introduced actress Veena in
Yaad and Munawwar Sultana as a lead heroine in Pehli Nazar. His last
role was in Usha Kiran.
Cinema. He was acknowledged for his strong yet natural performances,
best exemplified by his role in V. Shantaram's classic Padosi (1941),
wherein Mazhar, a Muslim, enacted the role of an upper-caste Hindu. He
started his career as a police officer, which he left to study law for
a short period. Abandoning his studies he came to Bombay and started
his career in cinema with the silent film Fatal Garland opposite the
top actress of the time, Ermeline. He became a popular actor, gaining
success in several silent films. During his stint in silent films he
worked with well-established directors like Bhagwati Mishra, Ezra Mir,
Moti P. Bhagnani, R. S. Chowdhary, and M. D. Bhavnani. The magazines
of those days, circa 1940s, compared Mazhar to Hollywood actors like
Paul Muni, Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff.Mazhar Khan made a successful
transition to Talkies with the end of the Silent Era. Nurjehan (1931),
directed by Ezra Mir, was his first Talkie picture. It received a
positive response from the audiences establishing Mazhar as a
profitable and dependable actor. He went on to work with the East
India Film Company in Calcutta and Sagar Movietone, making films like
Sultana, Night Bird, Salima and Sonhera Sansar. He then moved back to
Bombay and worked under Ranjit Movietone. Having established himself
in the different roles he portrayed, he became renowned for he became
renowned for his character depictions while also being respected in
the film industry.He formed his own production company, Asiatic
Pictures under the banner of which he first made Yaad (1942) and then
Pehli Nazar (1945), the latter film referred to as his best
directorial triumph in his obituary. He introduced actress Veena in
Yaad and Munawwar Sultana as a lead heroine in Pehli Nazar. His last
role was in Usha Kiran.
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