Jugnu was released on 23 May 1947. The film was conceptualized and filmed in
pre-independence India however, the film's censored version was subsequently released after the
partition. The film drew significant controversy upon release, for two major reasons. The first reason was its depiction of romance, flirting and dancing on a college campus setting, which led to negative reviews from film critics. This led to 28 minutes of content being censored by the Indian government. The second reason was the film's director Rizvi and lead actress Noor Jehan becoming
Pakistanis after the partition of India.
Critical reception In 1948, the biggest Indian film magazine at the time,
Filmindia, was very critical of the film. The magazine's editor, film critic Baburao Patel, wrote a negative review, calling
Jugnu a "dirty, disgusting, vulgar picture!" Patel stated, it "tells us that college life in India is nothing more than a long sex hunt in which boys chase girls, explore their hand bags, rob their tiffin boxes and sing suggestive love ditties while making vulgar gestures; while girls sigh about heavily, seduce boys to tea, pimp for their friends, puncture their cycle tyres and sing songs of frustrated love," and added, "no decent exhibitor with any pride for his profession or any self-respect should exhibit it in his theatre." He also criticized the director Rizvi for becoming a Pakistani national, falsely accusing him of having connections with
Hyderabad State separatist
Kasim Razvi. Another 1948
Filmindia editorial attacked
Muslim filmmakers such as Rizvi for working in both India and Pakistan, stating "censors must watch carefully such anti-social and anti-religious activities of these fanatic producers who live with us to stab us from day to day," while referencing
Jugnu as an example.
Box office Jugnu (1947 film) grossed Indian rupee|50
lakh (
US$5 million) in India, making it the
highest-grossing Indian film of 1947. When adjusted for inflation, its gross in 2016 value is equivalent to 363 crore (US$ million). This is the highest for any Indian film at the time, until it was surpassed by
Andaz, which also stars Kumar in lead role along with
Nargis and
Raj Kapoor. ==Notes==