The Filmfare magazines in Goddess celebrate Bollywood icon and Hindi cinema’s ‘tragedy queen’, Meena Kumari. Pictured in a white dupatta (veil) the magazine promotes the upcoming release of Pakeezah (1972). India’s first film in colour Cinemascope, Pakeezah was screened in cinemas for over 50 weeks. But it was the film’s fabled 15-year production and Kumari’s star power that made it legendary. Originally conceived as a love letter by her husband, production halted when the couple split. Thirteen years after filming began, they returned to shoot the remaining scenes. Using footage from both decades, Kumari’s appearance fluctuates as she battles alcoholism and the end of her marriage.
‘A Star is Dead’ proclaims Filmfare magazine, mourning Kumari’s death just three weeks after Pakeezah premiered. Though she didn’t live to see it, her star persona and popularity united India and Pakistan in 1973 after years of conflict. When Pakeezah was broadcast from India into Pakistan, crowds gathered to watch Kumari on big-screen TVs arranged at traffic intersections.
Even at the end of her 30-year career, Kumari’s style still inspired fans, who bought film tickets for their tailors and asked them to recreate the leading lady’s costumes – a practice that continues in India today.
The modern face of India
Meena Kumari understood the power of costuming. Pictured on the cover of Star & Style magazine and in the film stills in Goddess, she wears kurta and lungi; a loose collarless green shirt and red chequered sarong. Traditionally worn by men, this ensemble sparked a fashion trend across India and the South Asian diaspora.
The white sari, worn in the below video from Pakeezah, formerly signified a widow but re-emerged as a symbol of female emancipation when it was worn by activists during the campaign for Indian independence. On screen, Kumari harnessed the colour’s political properties to represent a new, modern face of Indian femininity.
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Collection
Not in ACMI's collection
Previously on display
1 October 2023
Australian Centre for the Moving Image
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
193583
Curatorial section
Goddess → Crafting the ideal → Meena Kumari