Mustajab Malik: An Independent Moviemaker of New Cinema
Hollywood producer and Tennis player Ashok Amritraj (C) unveiling the poster of ' God Must Die' directed by Mustajab Malik (R) at 77th Cannes Film Festival.
Mustajab Malik identifies himself as a theatre artist first but he is equally passionate about filmmaking. Poster of his latest feature film, ‘God Must Die,’ was recently unveiled at the 77th Cannes Film Festival.
For more than two and a half decade, Mustajabuddin Malik (screen name Mustajab Malik) has been at the forefront of art of theatre and film. Majaz – A Life in Poetry’ is his first directed feature film along with Huma Khalil. The movie, a biopic on the life of famous Urdu Poet, received best directors’ award from “New York City Film Infest 2023”. He has recently written and directed Hindi feature film on the tradition of Marriage Band in India which has been recently released worldwide on Apple TV and Google Play.
Malik has written and directed another feature film ‘God Must Die’. This movie is inspired by Fyodor Dostoevsky‘s “Notes from Underground “and philosophies of Friedrich Nietzsche (God is Dead), Richard Dawkins, Charvaka and Shikwa of Iqbal. However, for both critics and viewers, ‘God Must Die’ is not just a vortex of philosophical musings. It’s a social commentary, pushing viewers to confront the complex realities of faith, prejudice, and meaning for life in a seemingly godless world.
Malik directed a documentary film ‘Bazaar Karte Hain Baatein- Naye Puraney Zamaney Ki’ for Rajya Sabha TV. ‘Mahamana’ is a docudrama on the life, work and inspiration of Pt. Madan Mohan Malviya. He recently completed a docudrama TV series ‘Charagh – e – Hind’ for Zee TV channel. He has directed documentary ‘Kaal: Concept of time in India’, ‘Kitab ki kahani: from Oral recitation to printing press’ and ‘Kaprey Ka Safar: Story of fabrics in India’.
Mustajab Malik: Ram Leela Guru
In theatre circles, Malik is popularly known as Ram Leela Guru. He was awarded a Fellowship in Folk Theatre on the works of Ram Lila traditions by Ministry of Culture, Government of India. He is a disciple of Late Habib Tanvir and worked with his Naya Theatre for many years. He has written and directed some award winning Hindi plays like ‘Daastan-e-Ram’, ‘Bahot Andhera Hai’, ‘Kahin Kisi Mor Pe’ and ‘Recall’. His famous mega play is “DAST-E-RAM”.
Currently, Mustajab Malik is directing ‘Krishna’ — an Indo-French production. He is also making a new film on the massive use of steroids in protein in gyms that fitness freak especially children take regularly.
