The Courtesans of Bombay (1983)
In the Mumbai, India, tenement community of Pavanpul, young female courtesans sing, dance and perform sexual favors for male clientele. Directors James Ivory and Ismail Merchant blend documentary footage and dramatic reenactments in their exploration of this seamy underworld, the flip side of the Bollywood film industry, where aspiring actors and dancers -- some even sold into prostitution by their own families -- end up, with their innocence lost and their hopes for movie stardom shattered.
Director: Ismail Merchant
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Saeed Jaffrey as |
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Kareem Samar as |
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Zohra Sehgal as Herself |
| Directing | Ismail Merchant | Director |
| Sound | Ray Beckett | Sound |
| Writing | Ismail Merchant | Writer |
| Writing | James Ivory | Writer |
| Editing | Amit Bose | Editor |
| Production | Ismail Merchant | Producer |
| Production | Wahid Chowhan | Associate Producer |
| Writing | Ruth Prawer Jhabvala | Writer |
| Camera | Vishnu Mathur | Director of Photography |
| Production | Kareem Samar | Associate Producer |
| Directing | Michael Fields | Assistant Director |
