John Cawas (1910 – 4 October 1993) was a stuntman and actor in Hindi movies. Cawas made his debut in the Hindi film ''

Hunterwali ''Hunterwali'' () is a 1935 Indian Hindi-language action film by the Wadia Movietone company of Bombay (now Mumbai), featuring Fearless Nadia as the heroine. A story of a princess who fights injustice as the masked crusader Hunterwali (lit. "lad ...

'' (1935), which became a career-defining movie for

Fearless Nadia Mary Ann Evans (8 January 1908 – 9 January 1996), also known by her stage name Fearless Nadia, was an Australian-born Indian actress and stuntwoman, who worked in Indian cinema. She is most remembered as the masked, cloaked adventurer in ''Hun ...

and Wadia Movietone. Cawas himself was famous for his performance of Tarzan in various movies.

Early life

Born in 1910 in

Jabalpur Jabalpur is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. According to the 2011 census, it is the third-largest urban agglomeration in Madhya Pradesh and the country's 38th-largest urban agglomeration. J ...

in a

Parsi Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim conq ...

family, Cawas pursued a career of professional body building and won the 1930 All-India Bodybuilding Championship.

Film career

The 1930s was an era of adventure movies for Hindi cinema, and Cawas got his first break as a swordsman in ''Hunterwali'' along with Nadia and

Boman Shroff Boman Shroff was an actor, stunstman, director, writer, producer in Hindi cinema, in the silent era and the early talkies. Boman started working in Hindi movies prior to Talkies and was on monthly payroll of JBH Wadia and Homi Wadia's various m ...

. This role along with similar roles in subsequent sequel remakes of this movie helped Cawas establish himself as a professional stuntman and actor. His portrayal of Tarzan in

Toofani Tarzan ''Toofani Tarzan'' (Typhoon Tarzan/Stormy Tarzan) is a 1937 Hindi action adventure film directed by Homi Wadia. Produced by Wadia Movietone, the film had music by Master Mohammed with lyrics by Gyan Chander. It starred John Cawas, Gulshan, Nazi ...

movie from

Wadia Movietone 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'' (1 ...

was a career defining role for him.

References

1910 births 1993 deaths Parsi people Indian stunt performers Male actors in Hindi cinema People from Jabalpur Indian bodybuilders 20th-century Indian male actors Male actors from Madhya Pradesh {{India-film-actor-stub