'' Tamas '' ( lit . '' Darkness '' ) is a 1988 period television film written and directed by Govind Nihalani . It is based on the Hindi novel of the same name by Bhisham Sahni ( 1974 ) , which won the author the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1975 . Set in the backdrop of riot-stricken Pakistan at the time of Partition of Punjab in 1947 , the film deals with the plight of emigrant Sikh and Hindu families to India as a consequence of the partition . It was first shown on India 's national broadcaster Doordarshan as a mini-series and later as a one-off four-hour-long feature film . At the 35th National Film Awards , it won three awards including the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration . In August 2013 , it was shown on History TV18 as a series
35th National Film Awards
35th National Film Awards
Tamas (film)