Director: Babubhai Mistri, Batuk Bhatt; Writer: Nanabhai Bhatt, J.B.H. Wadia; Producer: Homi Wadia; Cinematographer: Anant Kadam; Editor: D R Padate; Cast: Fearless Nadia, Yakub, Agha, Baby Madhuri, Dalpat, Azim, Habib, M.K. Hasan, Jal Khambatta, Kunzru, Khan Mastana, Nazira, Rajni, Abdul Rehman, Shreenivas
Duration: 02:13:10; Aspect Ratio: 1.333:1; Lightness: 0.273; Volume: 0.230; Cuts per Minute: 6.976
Summary: Nadia departed from her Zorro-like persona to make her last film for Wadia Movietone (before it it became Basant Pictures), a double role of twin sisters: the good Madhuri and the bad Rita. The villain, rebuffed by the infant twins’ mother, kidnaps Rita, whom he raises to be a nightclub singer and gangster’s moll. Madhuri is brought up by the good Rai Bahadur. Madhuri impersonates her sister, after holding her up with her own gun- shaped cigarette lighter, and unmasks the villain. The climax has Madhuri’s planned assassination at the hands of the villain as part of a magic show, raising tension when Madhuri exchanges places with Rita. Nadia’s stilted Hindi and orthodox (by the 40s) performance contrasts sharply with the mobile presence of comedian Agha, playing Yakub’s sidekick. The film claims to be the first in India to use a split-screen for a double role, and included some bravura special effects by Mistri, e.g. one sister walking across the other even though the camera establishes both to be Nadia. Other highlights including the spectacular nightclub set that can be transformed into a respectable residence within minutes, using complicated pulleys, whenever cops raid the place.
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