Tag Archives: Anwar Ali

Veteran Actor and Mehmood Ali’s Sister Minoo Mumtaz Dies in Canada

Mumbai, MAHARASHTRA / Toronto, CANADA:

Photo Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Minu_Mumtaz.jpg

Minoo Mumtaz aka Malikunnisa Ali, the veteran Hindi actor and comedian Mehmood’s sister, died in Toronto in Canada on Saturday.

She was recently diagnosed with cancer and her health deteriorated quickly, leading to her demise, ETimes reported.

Mumtaz’s nephew Naushad, confirming the news to the publication, said, “Since she was old, 80 plus, there wasn’t much to be done. She was one of the loveliest people I had ever met”.

Her younger brother Anwar Ali, who is also part of the film industry and is now a producer, wrote, “Regret to inform that my loving sister Minoo Mumtaz, passed away (in Canada) a few minutes ago… Deep gratitude to the film fraternity, press, media, fans, friends, for decades of love and adulation showered upon her.”

Born to a family of four brothers and four sisters, Mumtaz was the daughter of Mumtaz Ali, a dancer and character artiste in Hindi films in the 1940s. She was renamed Minoo by actor Meena Kumari, her sister-in-law and Mehmood Ali’s wife.

While she started her career as a stage dancer, Mumtaz appeared in several Hindi films in the 1950s and 1960s as a dancer and character actor. She made her debut with Sakhi Hateem, and moved on to play the lead opposite Balraj Sahni in Black Cat (1959) and appeared in several Guru Dutt films including Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960) and Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962). Other Hindi films that she appeared in include Taj MahalAlibaba, Ghoonghat, Ghar Basake Dekho, Insan Jaag Utha, Sindbad, Jahanaara, Aladin, Gazal, Dharmaputra. She also appeared in the 2002 television serial Chalo Chale Pardes.

Expressing her condolences on the late actor’s demise, author Bhawana Somaaya wrote, “#MinooMumtaz lead dancer of Hindi movies in the 50s and the 60s dies in Canada. Condolences to #AnwarAli family.”

Actor Nasirr Khan also mourned Mumtaz’s death.

Mumtaz is survived by her husband Sayyed Ali Akbar, son and three daughters who lived with her in Toronto.

Namrata Ganguly is a Correspondent at Silverscreen India, and can be reached by email at namrata@silverscreen.in

source: http://www.silverscreenindia.com / SilverScreen India / Home> Hindi> News / by Namrata Ganguly / October 23rd, 2021

Good Samaritans with an abiding passion for books

Kochi, KERALA :

Two teachers set precedent by promoting reading habit among students

Kochi :

The tale of Totto-Chan, a girl who has come to symbolise unorthodox learning, is among the best-selling books published by NBT in Malayalam. Translated by poet and film-maker Anwar Ali, the book has been flying off the shelves like no other.

But besides the big purchasers, there are dedicated souls like Ramanunni, a retired teacher from Palakkad who set up a non-profit book selling venture. He has also played a key role in popularising books among school students and teachers.

T.N. Gopalakrishnan Nair
T.N. Gopalakrishnan Nair

Another compulsive book promoter is T.N. Gopalakrishnan Nair, a resident of Kallara near Koothattukulam, who retired as a government high school Malayalam teacher in 1994. “He comes with an autorickshaw to ship books for sales exhibitions,” says NBT assistant editor Rubin D’Cruz. “Considering that NBT books are heavily subsidised, leave alone profit, he ends up spending money from his own pocket in popularising these books.” Sure enough, Mr. Nair’s tryst with books began back in the 1980s during his association with the Kerala Sastra Sahitya Parishad. He saw before his eyes his son becoming a bookworm and excelling in studies and co-curricular activities alike. “This brought me closer to books big time. Subsequently, I found myself sourcing rare volumes for parents and teachers alike and began to extensively travel between Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode for books which were in short supply those days,” he says. Over time, Mr. Nair carved a niche for himself by single-handedly organising book exhibitions, which grew in scale with publishers, NGOs, schools, and like-minded individuals coming on board.

Recuperating from a medical condition, Mr. Nair is concerned about not being able to host a few exhibitions he had promised at schools in Kottayam this month.

“I should be active, hopefully from the second week of August, and I have committed book exhibitions at three spaces already. I have enough books with me now to hold five such. Fortunately, there is an auto driver who helps me out in transporting books,” says Mr. Nair.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Kochi / by Special Correspondent / July 09th, 2017