Abdul Mahmudov was born on 15 May 1944 in the village of Atbulaq, in what is now the Hajigabul district. He is originally from Shamakhi. Because his maternal line descended from the Hashimi royal house, his family was known as the Hashimkhanli. His paternal line was from Ardabil. He completed secondary school in 1961. His entry into cinema came during his childhood, when he appeared in the films "Bir məhəllədən iki nəfər" (Two from the Same Neighbourhood) and "Leyli və Məcnun" (Leyli and Majnun). He later studied acting under Adil Iskandarov at the Azerbaijan State Institute of Arts named after M. A. Aliyev (1962–1966), and then attended the directing department of the Higher Courses for Directors and Screenwriters in Moscow (1971–1973), studying under such renowned masters as Andrei Tarkovsky, Leonid Trauberg, Vasily Shukshin, and G. Danelia. He has worked as an actor at the "Azerbaijanfilm" studio since 1966. For a time he was the artistic director of the film-actors' theatre attached to the studio.
