Ismail Merchant's feature directorial debut addresses a subject close to his heart: the expressive Urdu language of Northern India, in danger of extinction as political trends and modernization obscure its contributions to Indian culture. Merchant 's treatment is wry and good humored , as his characters - an aging Urdu poet (Shashi Kapoor) and a worshipful young college lecturer - clash despite their shared passion for the beauty of words.
Stars: Shashi Kapoor, Om Puri, Shabana Azmi, Neena Gupta, Sushma Seth, Tinnu Anand
Crew: Ismail Merchant (Director), Wahid Chowhan (Producer), Donald Rosenfeld (Executive Producer), Anita Desai (Writer), Anita Desai (Novel), Shahrukh Husain (Writer)
Country: India, United Kingdom
Language: हिन्दी, اردو
Studio: Merchant Ivory Productions
Runtime: 126 minutes
Quality: HD
Released: Apr 15, 1994
IMDb: 6.2
