Mother India (मदर इंडिया) 1957

Published on October 29, 2011 in Cinema

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Banner	Mehboob Productions
Director	Mehboob Khan
Writer	Mehboob Khan, Wajahat Mirza
Producer	Mehboob Khan
Orginal music	Naushad Ali
Cinematography	Faredoon A. Irani
Film Editing	Shamsudin Kadri
Art Director
Camera Operator
Assistant Cameramen
Playback Singers	Shamshad Begum, Asha Bhosle, Manna Dey, Lata Mangeshkar , Meena Mangeshkar,Usha Mangeshkar Mohammad Rafi

Character	Actor / Actress
Radha	Nargis
Birju	Sunil Dutt
Ramu	Rajendra Kumar
Shamu	Raaj Kumar
Sukhilala	Kanhaiyalal
	Jilloo Maa
Champa	Kumkum
	Chanchal
Kamla	Sheela Naik
Shambu	Mukri
	Siddiqui
	Ram Shastri
	Fakir Mohammad
	Geeta
	Hameeda
	Master Surendra
	Mastan
	Nawab Khan
	Master Alec
	Sitara Devi
Chandra	Azra
Young Birju	Sajid Khan

The film begins with construction completion of a water canal to the village, set in the present. Radha (Nargis), as the 'mother' of the village, is asked to open the canal and remembers back to her past when she was newly married.

The wedding between Radha and Shamu (Raaj Kumar) was paid for by Radha's mother-in-law who raised a loan from the moneylender, Sukhilala. This event starts the spiral of poverty and hardship which Radha endures. The conditions of the loan are disputed, but the village elders decide in favour of the moneylender, after which Shamu and Radha are forced to pay three quarters of their crop as interest on the loan of 500 rupees. Whilst trying to bring more of their land into use to alleviate their poverty, Shamu's arms are crushed by a boulder. He is ashamed of his helplessness and is humiliated by others in the village; deciding that he is no use to his family, he leaves and does not return. Soon after, Radha's mother-in-law dies. Radha continues to work in the fields with her two sons and gives birth again. Sukhilala offers to help alleviate her poverty in return for Radha marrying him, but she refuses to "sell herself". A storm sweeps through the village, destroys the harvest, and kills Radha's youngest child. Though at first the villagers begin to migrate, they decide to stay and rebuild on the urging of Radha.

The film then skips forward several years to when Radha's two surviving children, Birju (Dutt) and Ramu (Rajendra Kumar), are young men. Birju, embittered by the exactions of Sukhilala since he was a child, takes out his frustrations by pestering the village girls, especially Sukhilala's daughter. Ramu, by contrast, has a calmer temper and is married soon after. Though he becomes a father, his wife is soon absorbed into the cycle of poverty in the family. Birju's anger finally becomes dangerous and, after being provoked, attacks Sukhilala and his daughter, lashing out at his family. He is chased out of the village and becomes a bandit. On the day of the wedding of Sukhilala's daughter, Birju returns to take his revenge. He kills Sukhilala and takes his daughter. Radha, who had promised that Birju would not do harm, shoots Birju, who dies in her arms. The film ends in the present day with her opening of the canal and reddish water flowing into the fields.