The curious case of Zia Mohyeddin's unsuccessful launch as a Lollywood film 'hero'

Zia Mohyeddin is rightly considered a living legend as far as compering, broadcasting, poetry and prose recitation, acting and theatre direction is considered. Once the spearhead and now the President Emeritus of the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) in Karachi, he has mentored hundreds of students now working in TV production. Having worked in Lawrence of Arabia (1962) with director David Lean, Behold a Pale Horse (1964) with director Fred Zinnemann, and later in Immaculate Conception (1992) with director Jamil Dehlavi, Zia Sahib — as he is known to most — has also worked extensively for British television. However, his launch pad as a ‘lead’ in Lollywood’s Mujrim Kaun (1970) was not as successful, despite its gripping story and evergreen soundtrack.

It was around 1967. Pakistan Television had been established in Karachi as well, and television was beginning to find its place in the drawing rooms of the elite. The British TV series Danger Man and Avengers had been shown on PTV, and in some of the episodes Zia sahib had appeared as a guest actor. The first Pakistani ever to work in Hollywood, Zia Mohyeddin had become a household name in Pakistan, especially among the flamboyant youth of the Swinging Sixties.

On the local filmi front, an official ban on the screening of Indian movies since 1965 meant that there was a requirement for locally produced full-length feature films, made within a short span of time. With a dearth of quality filmmakers available, many technicians switched over to direction. Aslam Dar, who had been a cinematographer all his life, also jumped on the director bandwagon, which already included the likes of Raza Mir and Riaz Bukhari. Being the son of director M.S. Dar, Aslam had directed Dara (1968) and Aakhri Chattan (1970) with Nasrullah Butt, a bodybuilder-turned-(very average) actor, by the time he was offered Mujrim Kaun.

For the upcoming musical thriller, the producer Mian Shehzad-ud-Din demanded Zia be selected to play the ‘lead’, as his sons had a liking for the thespian. Dar, generally famous for not tolerating any interference from producers, gave in. Yet he adjusted his favourite Sultan Rahi in the ensemble cast comprising Alauddin, Saqi and Rehan.

The 1970 whodunit Mujrim Kaun featured international sensation Zia Mohyeddin in a lead role along with a stellar cast but its failure left cine-goers guessing who to blame for the film’s demise at the box office

After his regular choice of female lead Rani’s marriage to director Hasan Tariq, Dar was in need of a girl who could dance and also ooze sex appeal. His gaze settled on Rozina, the girl from the then famous ‘Chai Chahiyye’ commercial and restricted to side roles in films until then.

In Mujrim Kaun, Rozina plays the role of Shehnaz who is meant to be engaged to Jamil (Zia Mohyeddin). Dar arranged for a meeting between the on-screen ‘lovebirds’ long before the start of the film.

Mujrim Kaun (1970) begins with the murder of archeologist Professor Sheerazi (Saqi), father of Zia Mohyeddin’s character Jamil. Along with his team, comprising Professor Jalal (Alauddin) and Dr. Najma (Ghazala), Prof. Sheerazi (Saqi) had discovered three pieces of a snake-like statue during an excavation expedition. Each piece had a part of a ‘treasure map’ etched on it, but the site had collapsed during the search for the last piece.

To make sure none of them attempted to go for the treasure by themselves, the trio had distributed the pieces amongst themselves to keep them safe. It was surmised that Professor Sheerazi’s murder had something to do with the hunt for the treasure. Veteran actor Alaudin, and Rehan, fresh from his success as a local version of Count Dracula in Zinda Laash (1967), kept the audience guessing as to who the real culprit was behind Professor Sheerazi’s murder. Actress Rozina was cast as Professor Jalal’s obedient daughter, while actress Nimmo played her best friend.

The story was penned by Haroon Pasha, elder brother of famous comedian and playwright Athar Shah Khan, aka Uncle Jedi. Haroon Pasha had been part of many Aslam Dar movies but, by turning to direction with the Punjabi film Manjhi Kithay Dhawan (1974), he also became Dar’s contemporary as a director. Later on, in the 1990s, Pasha even penned some episodes of the famous soap Dastaan, which aired on Zee TV.

The soundtrack of Mujrim Kaun, by music director Kamal Ahmed, remains timeless. 'Mere mehboob mere pyaar ke qaabil tu hai' was rendered in tandem by Mehdi Hasan and Madam Noor Jehan, while Mala and Ahmed Rushdi’s 'Hoonton pe tabassum' and 'Kuja-i-fe khanum' along with the solo 'Aaj main ne pee hai gulabi gulabi' by Rushdi, are part of the audio library of many avid collectors.

The fight sequences were also well-choreographed, including Jamil fighting goons on a running train and encountering them again in an antique shop. Comedian-cum-singer-cum-producer Rangeela as “Games Bond Zero Zero Zero, aik aur Zero” lightened the mood of the audience who came to watch the suspense-thriller. With his hilarious antics, funny one-liners and whacky get-ups, Rangeela dominated all the scenes he appeared in. Games Bond always carried a bag was called the ‘Games Bond general store’ and contained stocks of food, piles of extra clothing and a phone with a long connecting wire!

Mujrim Kaun also ticked all the boxes required to make a masala film. There’s a double role, a strange case of mistaken identity, a letter from a dying father, a henchman with a hooked hand, a kidnapping that results in the loss of memory, a treasure hunt and, above all, death by quicksand.

Unfortunately, the audience that had the luxury of a television set at home was quite small as compared to those who thronged the cinemas, to clap, whistle and hoot when the ‘hero’ entered the scene. With little or no access to television sets at that time for the masses, the presence of Zia Mohyeddin as the lead meant little or nothing to the majority of the public.

As per Zia Mohyeddin’s book The God of My Idolatry, the only briefing he received from the director about his role was that Jamil’s parents had died and “Jamil is hero.” For someone who had been the first Asian to have his name up in lights at the West End and on Broadway, the reply must have given him a slight idea of what was to come .

The year following the release of Mujrim Kaun, Zia Mohyeddin subsequently moved to television and was ceremoniously launched on PTV with a show bearing his name. Here, he interviewed prominent personalities in his unique manner and style, but his “lagay theka” style of presentation gained immense popularity among the audience. Though he continued acting, even sharing screentime with the likes of Sir Laurence Olivier, Charlton Heston, Rex Harrison and even Shashi Kapoor, he never returned as a ‘lead’ in Pakistani movies.

When I met the legendary Zia Mohyeddin at Napa and mentioned Mujrim Kaun, he laughed and said, “I cannot comment on the movie as I haven’t seen it.” The failure of Mujrim Kaun shows that local filmmakers are excellent at adapting Hollywood themes and stories, but are surprisingly shortsighted when someone who has worked with the greatest names in Hollywood offers his services to them. Much like the title, people are still left wondering who was to blame for the failure of Zia Mohyeddin’s debut on the Pakistani silver screen.

Originally published in Dawn, ICON, March 20, 2022