The Sindhi film industry boasts a rich history spanning both Pakistan and India. During the pre-independence era, movies in the Sindhi language captivated audiences across the subcontinent. Notably, the first-ever Sindhi film, a silent film titled Raja Harishchandra was released in 1913, produced by Dada Sahib Phalke. 18 years later, on 13 March 1931, the first talking film, Alam Ara was released. Hindi and Urdu movies continued to dominate the Subcontinent's cinema scene until 1940, when the first-ever Sindhi talkie film was released, marking the beginning of a new era in Sindhi cinema.
Raees Karim Bux Nizamani, a feudal lord, historian, writer and actor from Matli, a small town in the Badin district of Sindh, had the honour of financing the first Sindhi film Ekta (Unity), and becoming its hero. The movie was written by Khehal Das Fani, produced by Ram Panjwani and directed by Homi Wadia.
The movie featured Kaushalia, Gulshan Sufi and Hari Shivdasani in the lead roles. Gulshan Sufi and Kaushalia not only played key roles in the movie but also lent their voices. Hari Shivdasani moved to India after partition and became a household name of Hindi cinema her daughter Babita and maternal granddaughters Karishma and Karina Kapoor followed in his footsteps to become top class actresses. The plot of Ekta revolved around the topic of Hindu-Muslim unity and their living style during the pre-independence era. The film was banned by the British government just after two weeks of its inauguration but successfully set in motion the trend of making Sindhi movies.
The first successful Sindhi movie, titled Abana, was made in India in 1952, while the 1956 film Umer Marvi made in Pakistan turned out to be the first Golden-Jubilee Sindhi film. Syed Hussain Ali Shah Fazlani, Nighat Sultana and Noor Muhammad Charlie played lead roles in the blockbuster movie, revolving around the famous Sindhi folklore of Umer and Marvi. This movie probably laid the foundation for the golden era of the Sindhi film industry, infusing inspiration across borders to make films on historical subjects.
Hussain Ali Shah Fazlani played the lead role in another super-hit Sindhi movie Pardesi, making him a notable face of the entertainment industry. Two years later in 1958, Sindhi film makers came up with another movie Sassi Punhu, a historic love story Immortalised by Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai through his poetry. Another movie Parai Zameen (The Land of Strangers) released the same year shed light on the events of migration. A decade later film Shahero Feroz showcased the first ever on-screen couple of Mushtaq Khan Changezi and Mahapara that earned remarkable public-accolades for their performance in the film. The movie released in 1968 also introduced the melodious duo of Ustad Muhammad Yousif and Runa Laila. Laila hailed from a Bengali family but she gained unparallel recognition for singing Sindhi film and folk songs. After five years in 1973, Sindhi film Jeejal Mahu went on to win best film award by the Pakistan arts council. The same year Mr AQ Pirzada won best director award for Sindh movie Soorath – indicating towards the dominance of Sindhi films.
The era when the melody queen Noor Jahan began to dominate the Sindhi film industry marked a significant chapter in its history. During the 1970s and 1980s, Noor Jahan lent her soothing voice to several memorable Sindhi songs, enhancing the appeal of numerous Sindhi movies. The real-life couple Mushtaq Changezi and Chakori enjoyed immense popularity in Sindh, comparable to that of Muhammad Ali and Zeba or Santosh Kumar and Sabiha Khanum. During this golden era, actors and actresses such as Sadia, Reeta, Suzi Denial Disuza, Shafi Muhammad Shah, Qurban Jeelani, Shahebaz Durani, Malik Anokha, Waseem, Mahboob Alam, Mansoor Baloch, Saqi Kamal Irrani, Mumtaz Kanwal, and Sheeren Ishtiq became prominent figures in Sindhi cinema.
Sindhi films reached their zenith during this period, characterized by quality storylines, captivating dialogue, and heartwarming music. Prominent Sindhi writers and poets, including Ammar Jaleel, Sheikh Ayaz, Ram Panjwani, Moosa Kaleem, Syed Mazoor Naqvi, Abdul Gafar Tabasum, Aga Abdul Naveed, Aga Saleem, and Ayoub Sarhandi, dedicated their skills and ideas to uplifting the industry during the 1970s and 1980s.
However, by the mid-1980s, Sindhi films began to experience a slight decline. In response, filmmaker Asad Shah released three super hit films—Jalal Chandio, Paru, and Shaheed—which rekindled the industry’s fortunes. Shortly after, a movie titled Pukar, which highlighted the drought-like conditions in the Tharparkar region of Sindh, captivated Sindhi film enthusiasts.
Unfortunately, this revival was short-lived, and the industry faced a sharp and unrelenting decline during the 1990s. The film Himat (Courage) became the last commercial Sindhi film to be released in the main theaters of Karachi and Hyderabad, and after that, movie lovers never saw another Sindhi film in the province's cinemas. Several factors contributed to the industry's collapse, with the most prominent being a lack of quality scripts and diminishing interest from investors.
Senior stage and television actor Akber Dhalwai of Thatta believes that the downfall of the Pakistani film industry ultimately led to the end of Sindhi filmmaking. He added that the culture department has been limited to organizing literary festivals and should be utilized for the revival of commercial Sindhi films. Rafique Essani, another senior actor with experience in television and stage plays, attributes the disarray to weak scripts and poor acting methods.
Essani further highlighted that music composers from Sindh, such as Master Ghulam Hyder and Lal Muhammad Iqbal, inspired music maestros of the subcontinent, including Lata Mangeshkar and Ustad Mahedi Hassan Khan. He also pointed out that famous Pakistani singers like Ahmed Rushdi, Masood Rana, Mahedi Hassan, and Bashir Ahmed sang songs for well-known Sindhi movies, which is a testament to the industry’s past glory. Essani urged filmmakers like Fahad Mustafa and Yasir Nawaz to contribute to the revival of Sindhi cinema. Although noted director Syed Noor announced plans to make a Sindhi film in 2018, it remained just an announcement.
In 2015, Dr. Mehmood Mughal published a book on the history of Sindhi films, titled Sindh Talkies, which projected the glorious past of the Sindhi film industry. Sindhi movie lovers are still eagerly awaiting the revival of Sindhi cinema, as poor content and inferior approaches from directors have also led to the decline of the Sindhi drama industry.