Seasoned Film actress Chakori was laid to rest at Shah Farid graveyard in Sabzazaar on Tuesday, 2 Novembr 2010 – a day after she breathed her last at the age of 58.

She had been suffering from multiple diseases such as asthma and diabetes and would go through the process of blood transfusion.

Among the screen stars who attended her funeral were Sohail Ahmed, Jawad Waseem, Sardar Kamal, Bahar, Durdana Rehman, Nisho and Sangeeta.

A contemporary of Anjuman, Naghma, Aliya, Asia, Sangeeta and Zamurad, Chakori had performed in Sindhi, Punjabi and Pushto films till 90s.

According to her family, she was born in Gujrat and started her career from Sindhi films at a time when Sindhi cinema was making slow progress. Her first Sindhi movie “Mehboob Mitha” appeared in 1971 in which she performed a secondary role. The film had Anila Ejaz in the lead role with Mushtaq Changezi.

The same year she appeared in another hit movie “Pyar Kayo Singhar” which was produced by Yusuf Nasar, a known Sindhi filmmaker. Mushtaq Changezi and Chakori were the leading artistes in the film and their performance gave a boost to the Sindhi cinema. The duo developed an understanding and they got married and later performed in films such as “Pyar Taan Sadqey” and “Munjho Pyar Pukarey”.

Watching Chakori perform with distinction in the Sindhi films, the producers and directors from Punjab were convinced that she could show her talent also for Urdu and Punjabi movies.

Film Director Javed Fazil in his debut production “Goonj” signed Chakori in 70s. It was a multi-starred film having Shahid, Ghulam Mohyuddin and Usman Peerzada. The movie brought accolades to Chakori who later decided to stay in Lahore and do more films. Mushtaq Changezi was unhappy about this decision and the couple got separated.
Later, she played a lead role in Punjabi films like “Maula Jutt”, “Chalan” and “Hirasaat”. It was Maula Jutt which took Chakori to heights of popularity; she had attained the status of the second best heroine of the Punjabi films (Anjuman was enjoying fame as the best performer at that time).

Among Chakori’s Urdu movies were “Sheeshay Ka Ghar”, “Hera Pheri” and “Takrao”. She had worked in many films with Kaifi and the two married. Kaifi divorced her after the pair lost its magic on the silver screen. Subsequently, she tied the knot with a businessman.

Towards the twilight of her career she joined Pushto films and bade farewell to the industry in 1990.  

Chakori

Zulqarnain Shahid – Mag The Weekly – Karachi

Dusky damsel, Chakori could be called one of the most popular female artists of the mid 1980’s. With her earthy appeal and that saucily aggressive style of acting, the doe-eyed Chakori was actually the first film actress in the Punjabi films to challenge Anjuman. It was a time when Aasiya, Naghma, and Aaliya were leaving the field, and a few girls had overstayed, like Mumtaz, Zamarrud and Sangeeta. So, Anjuman was leading the fray by a huge margin. At this juncture Chakori took the Punjabi cinema by storm.

Actually, Chakori started her film career in the Sindhi films. When she joined the ranks, in 1971, with Mehboob Mittha, the Sindhi films were making slow progress. Chakori performed a secondary role in this film, which had Anila Ejaz in the lead role with Mushtaq Changezi. Chakori was spotted by a film-maker, A. H. Siddiqui, who had her in mind for his next film. When he made Jeejal Ma; a movie in a rural background, he immediately thought of Chaokri and cast her in the leading role with the number one hero of the Sindhi films, Mushtaq Changezi. The pair was an instant hit and she became the talk of the tinsel town. Her verve and curve was enough to launch her in the big circuit. The same year she appeared in another hit movie, Pyar Kayo Singhar, which was created by Yusuf Nasar, a well known Sindhi film maker. Mushtaq Changezi and Chakori were the leading artists in this film too. They complemented each other so well that the Sindhi cinema, otherwise on a slide, was resurrected and went from strength to strength. This proved to be a fusion of hearts too and they soon got married. Later, Pyar Taan Sadqey, Munjho Pyar Pukarey and many such films were also released to a responsive public.

Watching Chakori perform with distinction in the Sindhi films, the producers and directors were convinced that she was hot stuff for the Urdu and Punjabi flicks too. At this juncture, director Javed Fazil was making an Urdu movie called Goonj, which was his debut, somewhere in the late 1970’s. Fazil called Chakori to Lahore and gave her a secondary role in Goonj, which she performed to satisfaction. Goonj was a multi-starrer, in the typical tradition of Fazil’s films, which starred Shahid, Ghulam Mohyuddin and Usman Peerzada. It was enough to give Chakori an important foot holding in Lollywood. She decided to stay over in Lahore and do more films. But, this did not meet Mushtaq Changezi’s approval. So, they decided to separate. Soon, she became a lead in Punjabi films like Guarantee, Alaram, Maula Jutt, Challan, Hirasaat etc. Amongst these, Maula Jutt was the film that took Chakori to the moon. She had attained the status of the second best heroine of the Punjabi films, after Anjuman, and in some cases even rivaled her. Maula Jutt was a huge success throughout Pakistan, and Chakori’s loud demeanor even challenged the heroes. She was no damsel in distress, for sure. Simultaneously, she was doing Urdu movies like Sheeshay Ka Ghar, Hera Pheri, and Takrao etc.

By this time, Chakori had worked in lots of films with Kaifi, establishing a pair. But, that wasn’t just a matter attached to the box-office; Kaifi and Chakori had come closer off the screen too. They were working together in most of the films like Dangal, Milega Zulm Da Badla, Jeedar, Taqat, Raju Rocket, Behram Daku etc. Kaifi had married Ghazala earlier, and they were still together . But , Kaifi and Chakori still got married . Later, after their films started to flop and their pair lost its magic, Kaifi divorced Chakori and she married to a businessman. She had no other option but to join the Pushto films, which were on the increase in the country during the days of General Zia . At the apex of her popularity, she was not inclined to do roles that needed her to show expressive talent. This caused her downfall soon, and she left the industry during the early 1990’s.

Chakor's Films