| In Custody / Muhafiz | |
| Director: | Ismail Merchant |
| Producer: | Wahid Chowhan Paul Bradley (executive) Donald Rosenfeld (executive) |
| Music: | Zakir Hussain Ustad Sultan Khan |
| Cinematography: | Larry Pizer |
| Editing: | Roberto Silvi |
| Distributor: | Sony Pictures Classics (USA) Mayfair (UK) |
| Runtime: | 126 minutes |
| Language: | Hindi Urdu[1] |
| Country: | United Kingdom India United States |
| Budget: | $1 million[2] |
| Gross: | $0.1 million (US/UK) |
In Custody/Muhafiz is a 1993 film by Merchant Ivory Productions. It was directed by Ismail Merchant, with screenplay by Anita Desai and Shahrukh Husain.[1] It is based upon Desai's 1984 Booker Prize nominated novel In Custody.[3] [4]
Deven's (Om Puri) position as a professor of Hindi at a local college is only a means to an end. His first love is the Urdu language and in particular Urdu poetry. Deven's multiple (and often stymied) attempts to interview the great Urdu poet, Nur (Shashi Kapoor), act as a metaphor for the clash between modernization and tradition.
The film opened on 3 screens in New York City on 14 May 1994 and grossed $7,701 for the weekend. It opened on 3 screens in London on 3 June 1994 and grossed £2,814 in its opening weekend.[5] It grossed $92,612 in the United States.
The film also features poetry by Faiz Ahmad Faiz.[6]