Shantaram Rajaram Vankudre, referred to as V. Shantaram or Shantaram Bapu, was an Indian filmmaker, film producer, and actor known for his work in Hindi and Marathi films. He is most known for films such as Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani (1946), Amar Bhoopali (1951), Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje (1955), Do Aankhen Barah Haath (1957), Navrang (1959), Duniya Na Mane (1937), Pinjara (1972), Chani, Iye Marathiche Nagari and Zunj.
Shobhana Samarth was an Indian actress, director and producer who began her career in the early days of talkie movies in the Hindi film industry and continued in lead roles into the 1950s.
Prabhat Film Company was an Indian film production company and film studios founded in 1929 by the noted film director V.Shantaram and his friends.
Keshavrao Date (1889–1971) was an Indian film actor, who worked in both silent and sound movies. He tried to run his own drama company but found it difficult to perform the dual roles of manager and actor.
Kunku is a 1937 Marathi classic social drama film directed by V. Shantaram, and based on the novel, Na Patnari Goshta by Narayan Hari Apte, who also wrote film's screenplay. The film was simultaneously shot and released in Hindi as Duniya Na Maane.
Narayan Hari Apte, popularly known as Nanasaheb Apte was a Marathi popular novelist, writer of advice books and editor from Maharashtra, India.
Rajabhau Dattatraya Paranjpe, known as Raja Paranjape, was an Indian actor, director, producer and writer in the Marathi film and Hindi film industries. He started to produce Marathi films under the banner named Gajraj with G.D.Madgulkar and Sudhir Phadke. The super-hit Hindi film, Mera Saaya, was a remake of his Marathi film, Pathlaag.
Maharashtra Film Company was an Indian film production company, established by Baburao Painter in Kolhapur. Established in 1918, it was a silent film studio, which was a pioneer in Maharashtra and Marathi cinema, under the patronage of the Shahu Maharaj, the Maharaja of Kolhapur. It released the first significant historical, Sairandhari, released in Pune 7 February 1920. In the coming decade the only other major company was Dada Saheb Phalke's Hindustan Film Company. It made numerous films till the advent of talkies in 1931, but started collapsing after V. Shantaram left in 1929, to form Prabhat Film Company, it finally closed down in 1931.
Balgandharva is a 2011 Indian Marathi-language biographical film on one of the Marathi singers and stage actors Narayan Shripad Rajhans, famously known as Bal Gandharva. The name was bestowed to Narayan by Lokmanya Tilak after listening to his public performance in Pune while he was very young.
Das Baje, also called 10 O'Clock, is an Indian film. It was released in 1942. This was a debut direction for Raja Nene, a protege of V. Shantaram, and produced under Shantaram's Prabhat Film Company banner. The film was a bilingual, made in Hindi, and in the Marathi language as Daha Wajta. The music direction was by Keshavrao Bhole. The story was written by Kashyap and Pawar, with dialogues in Hindi by Ashant. The photography was by E. Mohammed. It starred Paresh Bannerji, Urmila and Vasant Thengdi in the lead roles, with Baby Shakuntala and Manajirao forming the supporting cast.
Tamanna is a Bollywood film. It was released in 1942. The film was directed by Phani Majumdar, who also wrote the screenplay, for the Laxmi Productions Ltd. banner. This was the first film from the Laxmi banner, which had been started by Chimanlal Trivedi who earlier headed Circo Productions. Tamanna was also the renowned dancer, Leela Desai's, first film in Bombay. The main cast included Leela Desai, P. Jairaj, Karan Dewan, Jagdish Sethi and K. C. Dey, who besides acting, composed the music. S. K. Kalla wrote the dialogue and lyrics.
Shejari is also known as Padosi in Hindi version as. Padosi is a 1941 Indian social drama film directed by V. Shantaram. It was produced by Prabhat Film Company and the bilingual film in Marathi and Hindi was the last film Shantaram made for Prabhat before venturing to form his Rajkamal Kalamandir. The film is cited as one of the three social classics Shantaram made at Prabhat. The other two were Duniya Na Mane (1937) and Aadmi (1939). The story and dialogue were by Vishram Bedekar in the Marathi version, while the dialogues in the Hindi version were by Pandit Sudarshan, who also wrote the lyrics. The music director was Master Krishnarao. The famous character artist Radhakrishan made his acting debut in the film as a villain. The film starred Mazhar Khan, Gajanan Jagirdar, Anees Khatoon, Radha Kishan, Lajwanti, Sumitra, Gopal and Balak Ram.
Rani Saheba also called Bazarbattu is a 1930 Indian silent film. It is cited as the first children's film made in India. The film was co-directed by V. Shantaram and Keshavrao Dhaiber. The cinematographers were S. Fattelal and Vishnupant Govind Damle and the cast included Keshavrao Dhaiber, Baburao Pendharkar, V. Shantaram and Anant Apte.
Shanta Apte (1916–1964) was an Indian actress-singer who worked in Marathi and Hindi cinema. Renowned for her roles in films like Duniya Na Mane/Kunku (1937) and Amar Jyoti (1936) under the Prabhat Films banner, she was active in Indian cinema from 1932 to 1958. Apte's impact on Marathi cinema "paralleled" that of Kanan Devi in Bengali cinema. Along with Kanan Devi, Apte is cited as one of the "great singing stars" from before the playback singing era. Apte began her career in films playing the role of a young Radha in the Marathi film Shyamsunder (1932). She joined Prabhat Films acting in her first Hindi language film Amrit Manthan in (1934).
Agnikankan: Branded Oath also called The Branded Oath, is a 1932 Marathi adventure film directed by V. Shantaram. The film was a Prabhat Film Company production and was a bilingual, called Jalti Nishani in Hindi. The cinematography was done by Keshavrao Dhaiber and Art direction by S. Fatehlal. The sound direction was by Vishnupant Govind Damle and the music and lyrics were by Govindrao Tembe. Dialogues for the movie are written by Govindrao Tembe. The character artist Gajanan Jagirdar began his career in films by acting the role of a seventy-five-year-old man at the age of twenty-five. The cast included Shankarrao Bhosle, Kamala Devi, Master Vinayak, Baburao Pendharkar, Nimbalkar and Jagirdar.
Hansa Wadkar (1923–1971) was a Marathi and Hindi film and stage actress of Indian cinema. She started her acting career at the age of thirteen years, as a heroine in the bilingual film Vijaychi Lagne (1936). Wadkar went on to make a name for herself working in the reputable film companies like Bombay Talkies, Prabhat Film Company and National Studios. Her career defining role was in Vishnupant Damle's Sant Sakhu (1941) where she enacted the role of the female saint Sakhu. Her other memorable roles were in the Tamasha genre films like Lokshahir Ram Joshi (1947), termed as the "Classic Marathi Tamasha musical". Sangtye Aika (1959) was another of Marathi cinema's "best known Tamasha film" along with Ram Joshi. She thus acted in two of Marathi cinema's biggest hits Lokshahir Ramjoshi and Sangtye Aika. The title "Sangtye Aika" was used by Wadkar for her autobiography compiled in 1971. The autobiography was initially serialised in the Marathi magazine Manoos helped by journalist Arun Sadhu.
Shanta Hublikar, was an actress and singer from early years of Indian cinema. Shanta worked in Marathi, Hindi and Kannada films from 1934 to 1963. Her songs Ab kis liye kalki baat from Aadmi and its Marathi version Kashala udyachi baat from Manoos became immensely popular and established her as a star actress of her time.
