Revisiting ‘Umrao Jaan’: Muzaffar Ali’s timeless elegy returns to screens-OxBig News Network

Long before Umrao Jaan, cinematic Lucknow was a silhouette, its people and places existed in stories, but its spirit remained absent. Then appeared Muzaffar Ali, armed with lifelong memories of Lucknow’s musky corridors and crafted not a homage, but a resurrection. 

Those who’ve never seen Umrao Jaan — who’ve only drifted along to its ghazals, memorised its couplets, and cherished Rekha’s resplendent costumes — prepare to pause your world. On June 27, the cinematic gem reawakens on the silver screen, with a new 4K restoration, inviting you to suspend time, lose yourself entirely and be captivated by its timeless poetry and beauty.  

In a conversation with The Hindu, Ali reflected on how Umrao Jaan reshaped Lucknow’s cinematic identity and how it differs from earlier films. “Before Umrao Jaan, cinematic Lucknow often featured its characters and places, but never its spirit. There was mention of the city, there were characters from it, yet the essence – the smell, texture, and the emotional presence never emerged. No one understood how to cinematically embody Lucknow’s identity,” he says.

Archival photos of Muzaffar Ali during the making of ‘Umrao Jaan’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

The director explains that his film offered Lucknow a distinct, authentic personality, born from his deep passion and intimate familiarity. He grew up in its homes, absorbed its cultural ethos and felt its nuances through his parents and personal experience. That understanding wasn’t just academic; it was emotional and lived. 

Expanding on this, Ali says, “That transformation – from memory to screen – is a different kind of artistry. And it’s the heart of Umrao Jaan’s contribution: not just setting a story in Lucknow, but embedding the city’s personality, rhythm, and cultural memory into every visual and narrative choice.” 

Discussing Umrao Jaan’s aesthetic, especially the costume design and art direction, Ali expands, “What makes Umrao Jaan feel like a painting isn’t just its colors – it’s its tactility, the weight of silk, the heat of dusk, the soft defiance of pearls.” Ali, a painter at heart, layered frames with a choreographed sensitivity where every fabric, curtain, and surface was a tactile invitation. He likens art direction to a visual poem; each set detail prompts a thought, a feeling, and a discovery. 

Ali explains, “The art direction has scenes of ethos and dramatisation and it has a very strong sense of nostalgia and being a painter I could imagine colours and pictures which I could recreate and reproduce in terms of tangible aspects of the film like costumes.” 

Calling the process of shooting a ‘restoration’ in itself, Ali says, “It was a complex, time-consuming process, nearly a restoration project rather than a typical shoot.”  

Recalling the shoot, Ali shares, “Many of the chosen sites like the Mughal Imambara and Amiran’s ancestral home in Amethi were in disrepair and lacked the shape and feel. So we draped the fabrics, built wooden overlays, crafted detailed curtains and installed soft furnishings.”  

Archival photos of Muzaffar Ali during the making of ‘Umrao Jaan’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

The Mughal Imambara scenes required almost 3-4 months of restoration; walls were repointed, plaster renewed and woodwork revived. “What a thing to bring back to life,” Ali admits, noticing how today’s restored spaces owe their vibrancy to that time and effort.  

Ali recalls a Kotha scene with Rekha where he used ‘moti ke parde’ pearl-beaded curtains which softly filtered light and created light shafts for the scene. He explains, “A reflection scene with Rekha became more like cinematic trickery when we used ‘moti ke parde’ where the beads acted as a gateway into layered longing.” 

By building the Kotha with such intricate details, he created a visual delicacy for the viewers. His anecdote reveals that this approach was not just a production technique but also a philosophy at the heart of visual storytelling, where each element like doors, curtains, windows and even beads contributed to elevating the scene.  

While talking about how Umrao Jaan helped shape the portrayal of courtesans in Indian cinema, Ali says, “Bollywood often avoids risky emotional territory, they don’t go into depth meanwhile with Umrao Jaan we dove fearlessly into that emotional danger – revealing a courtesan’s inner world shaped by both hardship and refinement.”  

In the film, the courtesan’s life isn’t glamourised; instead, her identity is deeply connected to ‘Tehzeeb.’ This approach shows the discipline, emotional restraint, and social restrictions that defined the courtesan’s world, rather than reducing her to a romantic archetype.  

Archival stills from ‘Umrao Jaan’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

Ali says, “Umrao Jaan didn’t gloss over the constraints of being a courtesan, instead it approached these characters not just as romantic tropes, but as fully formed human beings with their own world and limits.”  

Commenting on the re-release of Umrao Jaan, and his hopes for younger audiences, especially amid a lack of major new releases, Ali remarks, “it is a ‘long-haul” film –’iski koi waqt ki miyaad nahi hai’ – meaning the film transcends the typical theatre-run. It’s meant to travel from generation to generation. It will find a true home in private spaces where the film’s subtle charm can be savoured by the audience beyond the fleeting glare of theatres.”  

He adds, “The theatrical re-release serves as a bridge, an invitation for today’s youth.If you are passionate you should go and watch – a call to discover a timeless work, not because it’s trending, but because it endures.” 

Reflecting on what Umrao Jaan offers today that is missing in current cinema given the nostalgia and demand for quality storytelling, Ali comments, “The film offers everything…how a story is treated, how characters are carved out from words to cellulite.” He describes it as a ‘textbook for students’ further adding, “Umrao Jaan offers timeless craft and not fleeting trends. It demands presence and you learn it by living through it – not just watching it.” 

“An invitation to learn by feeling not by imitation,” Ali says, encouraging new filmmakers and viewers to appreciate craft and nuance.  

Ali emphasizes that Lucknow continues to offer cinematic potential, but it’s up to the filmmaker to choose depth over convenience. “If the filmmakers treat the city with respect – letting its texture and spirit flow through their respective films then Lucknow’s true beauty surfaces on screen.” 

Archival photos of Muzaffar Ali during the making of ‘Umrao Jaan’
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement

In recounting the opening scene of the film, Ali reflects on the ghazal “Kaahe ho byaahe bides arre lakhiye babul mohe” by Hazrat Amir Khusro — which is a traditional wedding lament often sung by mirasinwomen. 

He shares an anecdote: “I wanted the opening scene to breathe with authenticity, so we filmed the actual mirasin women who were familiar with the nazm.”  

Subsequently, professional singers recorded the final song over their voices. Those mirasin women brought soul and emotional depth crafting an iconic scene that resonates with cultural memory and authenticity.