Chanda (1962 film)

Chanda is an Urdu-language film that was released on 3 August 1962 in Pakistan. It stars Rehman and Sultana Zaman in lead roles. It is the first Urdu-language film to be produced in East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh).

It was also Shabnam's Urdu film debut.

Cast

 * Rehman
 * Sultana Zaman
 * Shabnam
 * Golam Mustafa
 * Subhash Dutta
 * Rani Sarker

Release
Chanda was released on 3 August 1962, six years of the release of Mukh O Mukhosh, the first feature film of East Pakistan. J.C. Anand distributed the film in Punjab and North-West Frontier Province through his distribution company Eveready Pictures. Anis Dosani arranged to distribute the film in other provinces and territories of Pakistan on a commission basis. Chanda was shown in movie theatres for 25 weeks.

Reception
Chanda was a commercial success in Pakistan and became a hit. According to Anupam Hayat, the film ushered in a new era in Pakistan. It changed the fate of Dhallywood positively. Film director Azizur Rahman criticized the poster of the film. He said the film's main theme is not presented in the poster.

Bengali filmmaker Alamgir Kabir said about Chanda in 1969: "The industry was fast heading for a disaster when a director dared to go a little bit further and made an Urdu language film. The film was Chanda (1962) directed by Etesham. It proved a money-spinner in both East and West Pakistan. Chanda performance naturally encouraged a trend of Urdu filmmaking in East Pakistan."