Ravindra Dave (16 April 1919 – 21 July 1992) was an Indian film director, producer, editor and screenwriter. He directed more than 30

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

films in the 1950s and 1960s including several hits like ''Nagina'' (1951), '' Agra Road'' (1957), ''Post Box 999'' (1958), ''Satta Bazaar'' (1959), ''Dulha Dulhan'' (1964) and '' Raaz'' (1967). He turned to Gujarati cinema with his blockbuster ''Jesal Toral'' (1971) and directed more than 25 Gujarati films in the 1970s and 1980s.

Early life

Ravindra Dave was born on 16 April 1919 in

Karachi Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former c ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

(modern day

Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...

) in a

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (gur ...

family. His family belonged to

Halvad Halvad is a town and a municipality in Morbi district in the Gujarat state of India. Geography Halvad is located at . It has an average elevation of 46 metres (150 feet). Halvad sits on the banks of the Samatsar Pond. Halvad was a ...

(modern day

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

, India). At the age of 14, he joined his uncle Dalsukh M. Pancholi in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city ...

as a production manager for his Punjabi films. He learned editing from producer and director

Shaukat Hussain Rizvi Syed Shaukat Hussain Rizvi (1914 – 1999) was a Pakistani actor, film producer and director. He is widely considered as a pioneer of the Pakistani film industry. Early life and career Shaukat Hussain Rizvi was born in the city of Azamgarh, Ut ...

Career

Hindi cinema

Dave directed two songs for ''Shiri-Farhad'' in 1942, which was left incomplete by director Prahalad Dutt. His direction of songs impressed his uncle Dalsukh Pancholi who entrusted him with the job. In 1943, he co-directed '' Poonji'' with Vishnu R. Pancholi. The film revolves around three sisters trying to prevent their father from remarrying. His next

noir film Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarded as the "classic period" of American '' ...

, ''Dhamki,'' was a suspense thriller. After the partition of India, he left

and moved to

Bombay Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second-m ...

(now Mumbai),

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. He directed social dramas, comedies, mythological as well as patriotic films. He directed several murder mysteries and suspense thrillers. ''Sawan Bhado'' was his first film after moving to Bombay. In 1951, he directed ''Nagina'' starring

Nutan Nutan Samarth Bahl (4 June 1936 – 21 February 1991), known mononymously as Nutan, was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi films. In a career spanning nearly four decades, she appeared in more than 70 films, mostly as a protagonist, in both b ...

and

Nasir Khan Nasir Khan may refer to: * Nasir Khan (actor), Indian film actor *Nasir Khan (Afghan cricketer), born 1998, Afghan cricketer *Nasir Khan (Pakistani cricketer), born 1975, Pakistani cricketer *Nasir Khan (FATA politician), Pakistani politician * Nas ...

. The film introduced playback singer C. H. Atma and the music was composed by

Shankar Jaikishan Shankar may refer to: People *Shankar (name), including a list of people with the name * Sankar (writer) (Mani Shankar Mukherjee), Bengali writer * L. Shankar, Indian violinist * S. Shankar, Indian film director commonly credited as Shankar *Sanka ...

. Following its success, Dave named his production company Nagina Films. He produced ''Satta Bazaar'', starring Balraj Sahni and

Meena Kumari Meena Kumari (born Mahjabeen Bano; 1 August 1933 – 31 March 1972) was an Indian actress and poet, who worked in Hindi films. Popularly known as ''The Tragedy Queen'', she was active between 1939 and 1972. Kumari is widely considered one of ...

, and '' Dulha Dulhan'', starring

Raj Kapoor Raj Kapoor (pronunciation: �aːd͡ʒ kəpuːɾ born Shrishti Nath Kapoor; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of th ...

and Sadhana under the banner of Nagina Films. ''Naina'' starred

Geeta Bali Geeta Bali (born Harkirtan Kaur; 1930 ‒ 21 January 1965) was an Indian actress who appeared in Hindi language films. She was the wife of noted film actor Shammi Kapoor. Early life Geeta Bali was born as Harikirtan Kaur in Amritsar in the Pu ...

and

Abhi Bhattacharya Abhi Bhattacharya (20 November 1921 – 11 August 1993) was an Indian actor of Hindi and Bengali cinema, who is most remembered for his roles in films of the 1950s and the 1960s, such as '' Yatrik'' (1952), '' Jagriti'' (1954), '' Anuradha'' ...

. His films ''Moti Mahal'' and ''Char Minar'' were thrillers. Actor Vijay Anand debuted with his film '' Agra Road''. ''Post Box 999'', starring Sunil Dutt and

Shakila Shakila Mohseni Sedaghat ( fa, شکیلا محسنی صداقت, Šakīlā Moḥsenī Sadāqat), known mononymously as Shakila ( fa, شکیلا, Šakīlā; born May 3, 1962), is an Iranian singer-songwriter based in San Diego, California. She is ...

, was inspired by the Hollywood film ''

Call Northside 777 ''Call Northside 777'' is a 1948 reality-based newspaper drama directed by Henry Hathaway. The film parallels the true story of a Chicago reporter who proved that a man jailed for murder was wrongly convicted 11 years before. James Stewart stars ...

''. '' Raaz'' starred Rajesh Khanna and

Babita Babita Shivdasani-Kapoor (born 20 April 1947), also known simply as Babita or Babita Kapoor, is a former Indian actress who appeared in Hindi-language films. The daughter of actor Hari Shivdasani, she is the first cousin of her contemporary a ...

. His last Hindi film was ''Road to Sikkim'' starring

Anju Mahendru Anju Mahendru is an Indian actress. She is best known as Reeva in ''Kahiin to Hoga'', Kamini Gupta in '' Kasautii Zindagii Kay'' and Beeji in ''Ek Hazaaron Mein Meri Behna Hai''. Personal life Mahendru was briefly engaged to cricket player Gar ...

and Dev Kumar. He worked with some of the leading composers of the time, including: Ghulam Haider,

Husnlal Bhagatram Husn Lal and Bhagat Ram were the first legendary music directors duo in Bollywood. They are two brothers, Husn Lal (8 April 1920 – 28 December 1968) and Bhagat Ram (1914 – 29 November 1973). Husn Lal was also a renowned violinist, vocalist ...

, Vijaysinghraje Patwardhan,

, C. Ramchandra,

Chitragupta Chitragupta (Sanskrit: चित्रगुप्त, 'rich in secrets' or 'hidden picture') is a Hindu deity assigned with the task of keeping complete records of the actions of human beings and punishing or rewarding them according to their ...

, O. P. Nayyar,

Manna Dey Prabodh Chandra Dey (May 1, 1919 − October 24, 2013), known by his stage name Manna Dey, was an internationally acclaimed and celebrated Indian playback singer, music director, and a musician. As a classical vocalist, he belonged to the Bhe ...

S. D. Burman Sachin Dev Burman (1 October 1906 – 31 October 1975) was an Indian music director and singer. A member of the Tripura royal family, he started his career with Bengali films in 1937. He later began composing for Hindi movies and became one o ...

, Roshan, Kalyanji-Anandji and Ravi.

Gujarati cinema

Dave had planned to remake his blockbuster ''Nagina'' with

Leena Chandavarkar Leena Chandavarkar (born 29 August 1950) is an Indian former actress who appeared in Bollywood movies as a leading actress and now appears in reality shows. She was an actress during the late 60s and early 70s. She played leading heroine opposi ...

and

Sanjay Khan Sanjay Khan (born Shah Abbas Ali Khan Tanoli, 3 January 1941) is an Indian actor, producer, and director known for his works in Hindi films and television. Sanjay Khan made his debut in Chetan Anand's 1964 film '' Haqeeqat'', followed by the R ...

, but the project was delayed. As a result, he turned his production crew to Gujarati cinema to keep them employed. He directed ''Jesal Toral'' based on the local legend of Gujarat launching the careers of Upendra Trivedi and Ramesh Mehta. The film proved to be one of the biggest hits of Gujarati cinema and ran for 25 weeks in theatres. It won 17 awards from the

Government of Gujarat The Government of Gujarat, also known as Gujarat Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Gujarat and its 33 districts. It consists of an executive of the legislators appointed by the Governor of Gujarat, a judiciar ...

. The film is considered to have revived the Gujarati cinema. His other blockbuster Gujarati films include: ''Raja Bharathari'', ''Hothal Padmani'', ''Kunwarbai nu Mameru'', ''Shetal Ne Kanthe'', ''Malavpati Munj'', ''Bhadar Tara Vehta Pani'', ''Son Kansari,'' and ''Patali Parmar''. His last Gujarati film was ''Malo Nagde'' starring Upendra Trivedi,

Aruna Irani Aruna Irani (born 3 May 1946) is an Indian actress, who has acted in over 500 films throughout Hindi, Kannada, Marathi and Gujarati cinema, playing mostly supporting and character roles. She has won two Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Ac ...

and

Mulraj Rajda Mulraj Rajda (13 November 1931 – 23 September 2012) was an Indian writer, actor and director who predominantly worked in Hindi and Gujarati films, television shows and theatre. He is regarded as one of the most finest artist in the Gujarati ...

. He directed 26 Gujarati films in total. Upendra Trivedi starred in 16 of them and he collaborated with music composer Avinash Vyas on 20 of them.

Last years

In the 1980s, he undertook a crime thriller titled ''Mera Pati Mera Qatil'' with the hope of returning to Hindi films, but the film never went into production due to his ill health and financial constraints. Years later,

Rakesh Roshan Rakesh Roshan (born 6 September 1949) is an Indian film producer, director, screenwriter, and actor who works in Hindi films. He is the son of Indian music director Roshan and Indian Bengali singer Ira Roshan. He had appeared in 84 films thr ...

produced ''

Khoon Bhari Maang ''Khoon Bhari Maang'' () is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed and produced by Rakesh Roshan. Based on the Australian mini-series ''Return to Eden'' (1983), it stars Rekha as a wealthy widow who is almost killed by her sec ...

'' with a similar plot which was declared a hit. Ravindra Dave died on 21 July 1992 in Mumbai.

Legacy

Film historian Subhash Chheda said, "Dave brought the diminishing

Gujarati culture The culture of Gujarat is both ancient, new, and modern. Gujarati engagement ceremony ''In many Gujarati communities, the engagement ceremony is known as 'Gol Dhana', which does not include a ring ceremony''. (in Gujarati script, ગોળ-ધ ...

in front of the people. The films were mostly produced for an urban audience then. He made films for a rural audience which were also well received by the urban audience. His biggest contribution o Gujarati cinemais bringing a new audience to Gujarati films." Due to his expertise in thriller and mystery films, Chheda called him India's Alfred Hitchcock.

Personal life

Dave was married to Jashumatiben. He enjoyed driving and owned several vintage cars. He was an amateur painter, carpenter, and sculptor. Dave was fondly known as Ravinbhai in the Hindi film industry and Bapa in the Gujarati film industry.

Filmography

He directed, produced or wrote the following films:

Director

Hindi films

Gujarati films

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dave, Ravindra Gujarati-language film directors Film directors from Gujarat 1919 births 1992 deaths Hindi-language film directors 20th-century Indian film directors Indian silent film directors People from Karachi People from Mumbai