Review of Mahal (1949) by Luke T — 27 Sep 2016

This was India's first so-called horror film when it was first released but now it is definitely considered to be more a thriller film than a horror. Still, it was one of the biggest hits at the Indian Box Office when it was released in 1949, being declared a Super Hit and I can understand why.

Directed by Kamal Amrohi, the story concerns a young man who takes shelter in a haunted mansion on a stormy night. Ashok Kumar gives a very good performance in his role as Hari, the man who takes shelter but soon discovers it has a dark history behind it.

The best performance in the film, however, goes to a young Madhubala. She gives one of the best performances of her career - one that I consider to be her best - as Kamini, the woman who Hari becomes fascinated with - little does he know she is a ghost. She became a huge star following this film and she was only 16 years old at the time, making her one of the youngest actresses to look out for in the future.

There is one particular scene that stands out well which sees Hari wondering where Kamini is after he hears her voice.

The direction from Amrohi is superb because he keeps a good pace going from start to finish, while the script is very well written by the director.

While the dance numbers and costumes are excellent as always, the best song in the film without any doubt goes to Aayega Aanewala sung by an uncredited Lata Mangeshkar. It's a shame that she was uncredited because the song became massive at the time of its release and to this day I believe it is one of the classic songs of Indian cinema.

It's also a shame that the Filmfare Awards were not introduced in this year, because if they were, I reckon this would have won a few awards, most notably Best Film, Director and Actress for Madhubala and Best Female Playback Singer for Mangeshkar. It also may have won National Film Awards if they were introduced in this year too.

Still nevertheless, this is one superb and brilliantly-acted film with lots of suspense throughout, keeping you on the edge-of-your-seat and Madhubala is absolutely superb. If I had to choose what my personal favourite Bollywood movie of all time, it would have to be this one. It also set the standard for classic Bollywood thrillers for the future as well. Absolutely brilliant viewing!