Mary Ann Evans, also known by her stage name Fearless Nadia, was an Australian-Indian actress and stuntwoman, who worked in Indian cinema. She is most remembered as the masked, cloaked adventurer in Hunterwali, released in 1935, which was one of the earliest female-led Indian films.
Nanabhai Bhatt was an Indian film director and producer who worked in Hindi and Gujarati cinema. He is known for making over a hundred fantasy and mythological films, including Mr. X (1957), Zimbo Comes to Town (1960), Lal Qila (1960) and the blockbuster Kangan (1959) starring Nirupa Roy and Ashok Kumar. His first film, Muqabala (1942), was the first to feature the double-role or "twins" phenomenon in Indian cinema, wherein lead actress Fearless Nadia alternated between the good sister and the gangster's moll. The formula was subsequently emulated in numerous Hindi films.
Babubhai Mistry was an Indian film director and special effects pioneer who is best known for his films based on Hindu mythology, such as Sampoorna Ramayana (1961), Mahabharat (1965), and Parasmani (1963) and Mahabharat
Homi Wadia was an Indian film director and producer in Bollywood. He was the co-founder of Wadia Movietone productions, established in 1933 and later after the closure of Wadiatone, he founded Basant Pictures in 1942. In a career spanning five decades, he directed over 40 films, including Hunterwali (1935), Miss Frontier Mail (1936), Diamond Queen (1940), Shri Ram Bhakta Hanuman (1948) and fantasy film Hatim Tai (1956). He was also a founding member of the Film & Television Producers Guild of India, established in 1954. Homi Wadia was married to actress and stunt woman Fearless Nadia. Homi was the younger brother of JBH Wadia, who was himself a movie director.
Jamshed Boman Homi Wadia, commonly referred to as J. B. H. Wadia, was a prominent Bollywood movie director, screenwriter, producer and founder of Wadia Movietone Studio. He was born in prominent Parsi family which hailed from Surat, Gujarat whose ancestral business was ship building. Their family name of Wadia stands for master shipbuilders. In a family of entrepreneurs Wadia is credited with creation of movies involving populist stunt roles including those by Fearless Nadia and bringing concept of stunt actresses in Indian cinema.
John Cawas was a stuntman and actor in Hindi movies. Cawas made his debut in the Hindi film Hunterwali (1935), which became a career-defining movie for Fearless Nadia and Wadia Movietone. Cawas himself was famous for his performance of Tarzan in various movies.
Bambaiwali is a Bollywood action adventure film. It was released in 1941. The film was directed by Homi Wadia and produced by Wadia Movietone. It starred Fearless Nadia, John Cawas, Sardar Mansoor, Dalpat and Boman Shroff.
Hunterwali is a 1935 Indian Hindi-language action film by the Wadia Movietone company of Bombay, featuring Fearless Nadia as the heroine. A story of a princess who fights injustice as the masked crusader Hunterwali, the film propelled Nadia and the Wadia brothers of Wadia Movietone to fame.
Diamond Queen is a 1940 Hindi action adventure comedy film. It was directed by Homi Wadia and produced by Wadia Movietone. It starred Fearless Nadia, John Cawas, Radha Rani, Sayani Atish, Sardar Mansur, Dalpat, Kunjru, and Boman Shroff. This film was the seventh in the Diamond thriller series with the first being Veer Bharat in 1934, directed by Homi Wadia under the production of J. B. H. Wadia. It is cited as one of the best films produced by the Wadia brothers. The film's success saw Homi Wadia becoming a producer by which he was able to obtain raw stock for his films due to the rationing of two films per producer during the Second World War.
Miss Frontier Mail is a 1936 Indian action crime thriller film directed by Homi Wadia and produced by Wadia Movietone. The film starred Fearless Nadia, billed as the "Indian Pearl White" in the film. Her co-stars were Sardar Mansur, John Cawas billed as "Eddie Polo", Atish Sayani and Gulab. It was the third in the Diamond Thriller series. Like each film in the series, this too was a success. Nadia plays Savita whose father is the station master framed for a murder committed by a masked man. The masked man is intent on disrupting the railway service of the town to make way for an airline service. The highlights are Nadia's stunts on top of a speeding train fighting a gang of rail-road bandits.
Lutaru Lalna is a 1938 Indian Hindi-language action adventure film directed by Homi Wadia and produced by Wadia Movietone. The music was composed by Master Mohammed and Baldev Naik. The film starred Fearless Nadia, Boman Shroff, Sardar Mansoor, Sayani Atish and Sarita Devi.
Punjab Mail is 1939 action adventure Hindi film directed by Homi Wadia for Wadia Movietone. The score was provided by Madhavlal Damodar Master, and stars Fearless Nadia, John Cawas, Sayani Atish, Sardar Mansoor, Boman Shroff and Sarita Devi. The film once again had Nadia playing the avenging female with mask and whip astride a horse dispensing justice and beating up the villains.
Dhoomketu is a 1949 action adventure film directed by Homi Wadia. Made under the Basant Pictures banner, the music was composed by A. Karim with lyrics by Rajjan and A. Karim. Raja Sandow an early hero and director of films played a supporting role in this film. The film starred Fearless Nadia, John Cawas, Sona Chatterji, Dalpat, Boman Shroff, Ram Singh and Raja Sandow.
Aladdin And The Wonderful Lamp is a 1952 Indian fantasy film produced and directed by Homi Wadia.
Zimbo is a 1958 Hindi action adventure film directed by Homi Wadia and produced by Basant Pictures. John Cawas, the earlier hero of most Wadia Movietone adventure films is credited in the title role of the film as associate director, with special effects by Babubhai Mistry. The screenplay was by JBH Wadia with dialogues by Chand Pandit. The music was composed by Chitragupta, with lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri. The film starred Azad, Krishna Kumari, Chitra, Achala Sachdev, Sheikh and Dalpat.
Jungle Ka Jawahar is a 1953 Hindi action adventure film directed by Homi Wadia and produced by Basant Pictures. The story was written by Boman Shroff and the special effects were by Babubhai Mistry. Having played daredevil roles starting in the 1930s, Fearless Nadia was still playing lead action roles in the 1950s and continued to act till 1968. The film starred Fearless Nadia, John Cawas, Leela Kumari, Shyam Sunder and Shapoor Aga.
Alibaba And 40 Thieves is a 1954 Hindi fantasy action film directed by Homi Wadia. The film was a Basant pictures presentation under the Wadia Brothers Production banner. The story, screenplay and additional dialogue were by J. B. H. Wadia, while the dialogues were written by Chand Pandit and Tahir Lucknavi. The art direction and special effects were by Babubhai Mistry. The music was composed by Chitragupta and S. N. Tripathi. Chitragupta had worked as an assistant to S. N. Tripathi in some of the mythology and fantasy films before branching out on his own. The lyricist was Raja Mehdi Ali Khan. It stars Mahipal, Shakila in the lead roles, with S. N. Tripathi, B. M. Vyas, Sharda, Lalita Kumari and Helen.
Zabak is a 1961 Hindi/Urdu action costume drama film produced and directed by Homi Wadia for his Basant Pictures under the Wadia Productions banner.
Khiladi is a 1968 Hindi action film directed by Homi Wadia for Basant Pictures. It was produced under the Homi Wadia Production banner with music composed by Lala Sattar and lyrics written by Faruk Kaiser. Fearless Nadia starred in nearly fifty Wadia films, making stunt history starting with Hunterwali (1935). Khiladi was Nadia's last role in films. The film starred Nadia, Dilip Raj, Sujata, Amarnath, Suzie, Uma and Vishwas Kunte.
Wadia Movietone was a noted Indian film production company and studio based in Mumbai, established in 1933 by Wadia brothers J. B. H. Wadia and Homi Wadia. It was most known for stunt, fantasy and mythological films, including Hunterwali (1935).
