Mughal-e-Azam

Mughal-e-azam movie poster for sale.

Featured here is an extremely are original vintage three sheet Bollywood poster of the epic 1960 Hindi black and white film that is unanimously considered as one of the greatest Indian films ever made.

Directed by K. Asif and produced by Shapoorji Pallonji under the Sterling Investment Corporation banner, Mughal-e-Azam (1960) starred Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala and Durga Khote in key roles. Nigar Sultana, Ajit, Johnny Walker, Jalal Agha and Baby Tabassum played supporting roles in the epic.

This rare vintage three sheet Mughal-e-Azam movie poster was originally designed for publicity of the film during it’s first original theatrical release (somewhere in 1960) but never ended up being used.

Originally hand painted on canvas by one of the finest Bollywood poster artists in Indian cinema, Gopal Balwant Kamble (G. Kamble) from Kolhapur, this rare original Mughal-e-Azam movie poster features stunning artwork.

“Emperor of Acting” and the “First Khan” of Indian Cinema, Dilip Kumar is seen hugging Bollywood’s eternal beauty queen, Madhubala in a striking full length illustration. A large side profile painting of one of the founding fathers of Bollywood, Prithviraj Kapoor appears alongside. His face is seen drawn in a vivid shade of red, which gives this three sheet Mughal-e-Azam movie poster an eye catchy appearance.

Wearing a battle helmet, Prithviraj Kapoor’s handmade illustration blends with explosions and galloping horses at the bottom, giving away the war theme of the film.

An announcement on the top reads, “Sterling Investment Corporation Private Limited presents K. Asif’s Mughal-e-Azam. Music Naushad.”

Strong vivid color tones of red and yellow give this original Mughal-e-Azam movie poster a stunning appearance. Lettering used in this rare Bollywood poster is entirely in Devanagari Hindi.

The printed signature of master Bollywood poster painter Gopal Balwant Kamble is seen on the bottom left of the poster as “G. Kamble (India).” The title of the film appears hand drawn in white, set against a black background.

Mughal-e-Azam tells the story of Mughal Prince “Salim” (played by Dilip Kumar) who falls in love with court dancer “Anarkali” (played by Madhubala) and wants to make her his queen. The relationship is disapproved by his father, King “Akbar” (played by Prithviraj Kapoor), leading to a war between father and son.

Mughal-e-Azam (1960) is the first full length black and white feature film in the history of Indian cinema to be colorized for a theatrical re-release. The film’s color version was released theatrically on 12 November 2004, with a digital reworked soundtrack.

Mughal-e-Azam has the distinction of being the most expensive Hindi film ever made in Indian cinema. It is consistently ranked in polls as the greatest Hindi film ever made in Indian cinematic history. The film held the coveted title of ‘highest grossing Hindi film of all time’ for a full 15 years after its first black and white release in 1960, making this Madhubala poster photo, highly collectible!

A milestone in Indian cinema, the soundtrack album of the film is credited as one of the best in the history Bollywood and continues to be played till today. The film ranks on the lists of top Indian films, including the 2002 British Film Institute poll of “Top 10 Indian Films.”  The soundtrack album of the film was composed by legendary music director Naushad and lyrics were written by Shakeel Badayuni. “Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya” sung by Lata Mangeshkar has become an eternal classic, which continues to be played till today.

At a vintage Bollywood movie memorabilia auction in September 2014, the same original first release three sheet Mughal-e-Azam poster featured here was consigned by Indian Hippy – Bollywood Movie Posters. It sold for $4,722.76, while a two sheet Mughal-e-Azam poster at the same auction sold for $4,151.88. Combined together in one single lot, the two posters were sold for $8,874.64 to the biggest superstar of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan. The auction established a world record of most expensive unsigned vintage Bollywood poster lot ever sold, which remains unbroken till today.