K. Asif

Asif was born in Etawah, Uttar Pradesh, India to parents Dr. Fazal Karim and Bibi Ghulam Fatima. Asif went to Bombay and later took the name K. Asif. He became a successful director.

His directorial debut, Phool (1945), did very well at the box-office. In 1944, Asif planned to make a film called Mughal-e-Azam based on the life and times of Mughal Emperor Akbar the Great's court dancer, based on a Urdu novel 'Anarkali' written by Syed Imtiaz Ali Taj, with Chandramohan in the male lead and the then upcoming actress Nargis in the female lead. However, in 1946, before the production of the film could begin, the male lead, Chandramohan, died. At that time, Asif temporarily shelved the film until further notice. He produced the film Hulchul and released it in 1951.

At that time, Asif recast Mughal-e-Azam with Dilip Kumar in the male lead and Madhubala in the female lead and began the production of the film in the same year. In 1960, after twelve years in production, Mughal-e-Azam was released and became a huge hit at packed cinema houses across India.

After the release and success of Mughal-e-Azam, Asif planned yet another motion picture called Love and God, his first directorial venture to be made completely in color, and began production. The film was to star Guru Dutt in the male lead and Nimmi in the female lead. However, in 1964, when lead actor Guru Dutt died, shooting came to a halt. Asif recast Sanjeev Kumar in the male lead and resumed production of the film. During the production of the film, K. Asif died on 9 March 1971 at the age of 48/49 and the film was abandoned. In 1986, Asif's senior widow, Akhtar Asif, (younger sister of Dilip Kumar) released the film in an incomplete form.

K. Asif married three times. One of his wives, Akhtar, was the younger sister of actor Dilip Kumar. Some of his children were still very young when Asif died in 1971 aged 48. Akhtar had to raise the children single-handedly. She ensured the release of Asif's last movie, "Love and God," which was released in 1986, fifteen years after his death.

K Asif's was also married to actress and danseuse Sitara Devi.

Another of his wives was the actress Nigar Sultana, who played an important role in Asif's magnum opus, Mughal-e-Azam.

• 1960: Filmfare Best Movie Award - Mughal-e-Azam
• 1960: Filmfare Best Director Award - Mughal-e-Azam: Nominated
• 1960: President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Hindi - Mughal-e-Azam[1]

• K. Asif; Nasreen Munni Kabir; Suhail Akhtar (2007). The immortal dialogue of K. Asif's Mughal-e-azam. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-568496-4.

• K. Asif at IMDb