In 1952, when India’s first technicolour movie had just been released worldwide, little did its famed maker know that one of the female artists from the movie would go on to eclipse its main hero – the legendary Dilip Kumar.

Back in1949 Mehboob Studios had announced its upcoming multi-starrer Aan, featuring Nargis, Dilip Kumar, Nimmy and Nadira. When Nargis bowed out, Nadira replaced her as the feisty princess wooed by Dilip Kumar. Nimmy played the rustic Mangala, hopelessly in love with Kumar. 

Aan, Mehboob Khan’s grand retelling of The Taming of the Shrew, turned out to be an epic spectacle. Audiences gasped when they saw their matinee idol, Dilip  Kumar, in a swashbuckling avatar. 

The jaw-dropping sets, opulent costumes, captivating performances, and sweeping narrative peppered with battle scenes, sword fights, lions and tigers dripped with colour and life. Aan sent audiences into a tizzy. It was larger than life. 

Consider what fans today do when a Shahrukh Khan movie hits the theatres. Back then, it was no different. Frenzied fans parked outside theatres overnight, while those less desperate bought tickets at crazy prices. Mehboob Khan’s gamble had paid off. 

The world welcomed Aan with open arms. Interestingly, more than anything else, it was Nimmy’s Mangala who left the deepest impact on audiences worldwide, despite her not being the romantic lead. Nowhere was this more evident than in France. 

Now, remember, Aan was not only released in 28 countries but also dubbed in 17 languages, including Tamil, Japanese and French. However the French embraced Aan like no one else. The dubbed French version was petitely renamed Mangala, fille des Indes (Mangala, the Girl of India). 

What’s more, Nimmy’s face adorned every single theatrical poster in the country, while the film’s accompanying trailers screamed Mangala, elevating Nimmy as the main star of the film! Nimmy had taken France by storm. 

In London, Aan was retitled as the Savage Princess and premiered at the prestigious Rialto Cinema. Moviegoers came in droves and cash registers kept ringing for several weeks. Mangala had conquered London too.  

Now, there is an enduring anecdote which accompanied the movie’s grand premiere in London. At the glitzy do, Nimmy met dashing Hollywood actor Errol Flynn, famous for his role in The Adventures of Robin Hood.  

When Flynn, approached for a gentlemanly kiss on her hand, Nimmi pulled away, innocently reprimanding him, “‘I am an Indian girl, you cannot do that!'” The line stuck, the press went berserk, and Nimmi came to be known thereafter as the “…unkissed girl of India.” 

In Aan, Nimmy’s character dies early on in the movie. It is said that Mehboob Khan was so impressed with Nimmy’s performance that he included a fantastic dream sequence that extended her presence in the film.  

Some believe this dream sequence is the soul of Aan and the reason why Mangala, the doe-eyed rustic girl doomed to love and doomed to die, lives on forever. 

 

Sources:

Image Attributes:

  • Aan 1952 film poster, from @WikiCommons
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