Sabita Devi (1914–1965) was a Hindi film actress in

Indian cinema The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Ko ...

. She is stated to be one of the "prominent" leading ladies of the "pioneering era" of Indian cinema along with Mehtab, Bibbo,

Durga Khote Durga Khote (14 January 1905 − 22 September 1991) was an Indian actress, beginning as one of the foremost leading ladies of her times, she remained active in Hindi and Marathi cinema, as well as theatre, for over 50 years, starring in around ...

, Gohar,

Devika Rani Devika Rani Choudhuri (30 March 1908 – 9 March 1994), usually known as Devika Rani, was an Indian actress who was active in Hindi films during the 1930s and 1940s. Widely acknowledged as the first lady of Indian cinema, Devika Rani ha ...

and Seeta Devi. A Jewess by birth, she changed her name to find acceptability in Hindi cinema like the other Anglo-Indian and Jewish actresses of her time, Sulochana (Ruby Myers), Seeta Devi (Renee Smith), Madhuri (Beryl Claessen), and Manorama (Erin Daniels). After initially working with British Dominion Films Ltd., Calcutta, she shifted to Bombay and performed mainly in films produced by

Sagar Movietone Sagar Movietone also Sagar Films, Sagar Film Company and Sagar Productions was an Indian film production company involved in the making of films for Indian cinema. It was launched by Ardeshir Irani with Chimanlal Desai and Dr. Ambalal Patel in 19 ...

with her co-star in most films being Motilal. Some of the popular films with Motilal were '' Dr. Madhurika'' (1935) and '' Kulvadhu'' (1937) directed by

Sarvottam Badami Sarvottam Badami (1910–2005) was an Indian film director of Hindi, Tamil and Telugu films. He started his career as a sound recordist for the first talkie in India, '' Alam Ara'' (1931). In 1948 he helped set up the Films Division for news- ...

. Their first film together was ''Shaher Ka Jadoo'' (1934), which was also Motilal's debut film, and then ''Lagna Bandhan'' (1936) both directed by Kaliprasad Ghosh. She acted in ''Silver King'' (1935) with Motilal. It was an action film directed by C. M. Luhar, which became a "huge success". Counted as one of the top three female artistes of her time, in 1938 she was the third highest paid actress after Sulochana (Ruby Myers) and Gohar, drawing a salary of Rs. 3000 per month. "Classic writers like K. M. Munshi and Ramanlal Vasantlal" were commissioned to write stories for her films, with elaborate sets and "special rehearsals" provided along with an overwhelming "pre-release publicity". One of the top directors of the time she worked with doing social genre films was Sarvottam Badami. She formed her own production company, Sudama Pictures, in collaboration with Sarvottam Badami along with the assistance of

Ranjit Studios Ranjit Studios, also known as Ranjit Movietone, was an Indian film production company with studio facilities located in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It produced films between 1929 and mid-1970s. The studio was founded by Chandulal Shah along wi ...

. From 1935–1943 Sabita acted in fifteen films, all directed by Badami. Some of the comedy films she acted in like ''

Aap Ki Marzi ''Aap Ki Marzi'' () is 1939 Hindi romantic comedy film directed by Sarvottam Badami. The film was produced under the Sudama Productions banner. The music composer was Gyan Dutt with lyrics credited to Pyare Lal Santoshi and S. P. Kalla. It starr ...

'' (1939) and '' Ladies Only'' (1939), turned out to be big box office successes.

Family

Sabita Devi was born Iris Gasper into a Jewish family. Her father Percy Osborne Gasper, died in November 1938, in Bombay. Her mother remained as her manager-cum-companion. Sabita had two siblings, a brother and a sister.

Career

1930s

Her first film ''Kamaner Aagun'' (Flames Of The Flesh) was produced by British Dominion Films Ltd., Calcutta, in 1930. It was directed by Dinesh Ranjan Das and co-starred

Dhirendranath Ganguly Dhirendra Nath Ganguly (26 March 1893 – 18 November 1978), better known as Dhiren Ganguly or D.G, was a Dadasaheb Phalke Award-winning and Padma Bhushan recipient film entrepreneur/actor/director of Bengali Cinema. He had set up a number of ...

Debaki Bose Debaki Bose (1898–1971), also known as Debaki Kumar Bose, was an Indian director, writer, and actor who is recognized for his contribution in Hindi as well as Bengali cinema. He was born on 25 November 1898 in Akalposh, (now East Burdwan), Bu ...

, Ramola Devi and Radharani. The film was a semi-historical version of the Queen of

Chittor Chittorgarh (also Chittor or Chittaurgarh) is a major city in Rajasthan state of western India. It lies on the Berach River, a tributary of the Banas, and is the administrative headquarters of Chittorgarh District. It was a major stronghol ...

Rani Padmini Padmini, also known as Padmavati, was a 13th–14th century Rani (queen) of the Kingdom of Mewar, Mewar kingdom of present-day India. Several medieval texts mention her, although these versions are disparate and many modern historians question ...

, committing

jauhar Jauhar, sometimes spelled Jowhar or Juhar, was a Hindu practice of mass self-immolation by women, in the Indian subcontinent, to avoid capture, enslavement and rape by an invading army, when facing certain defeat during a war. Some reports of ...

to evade the enemy forces. In 1931, Sabita acted in ''Aparadhi'' (The Culprit) a social, written and directed by

, starring

P. C. Barua Pramathesh Chandra Barua (24 October 1903 – 29 November 1951) was an Indian actor, director, and screenwriter of Indian films in the pre-independence era, born in Gauripur, Dhubri, Assam. Early life Barua was the son of the royal family of ...

, Bhanu Bannerjee, Tincory Chakrabarty, Keshav Narayan Kale, Rampyari and Rose. It was a silent film made under the banner of Barua Film Unit, Calcutta. Her other silent films from this time include ''Takay Ki Na Hay'' (What Money Cannot Do) (1931) was directed by Dhirendranath Ganguly and produced by British Dominion Films Ltd., Calcutta. It starred Dhirendranath Ganguly,

and Radharani. ''Kanthahaar'' (Diamond Necklace) (1939) was directed by Kali Prasad Ghose for Indian Kinema Arts, Calcutta and starred Durgadas Bannerjee, Rajhans and Renubala. ''Maraner Pare'' (After The Death) (1931) directed by A. K. Roy for British Dominion Films Ltd., Calcutta and co-starred Dhirendranath Ganguly, Hem Gupta, Radharani and Kalidas. ''Bhagya Lakshmi'' (Wife's Destiny) (1932) directed by Kali Prasad Ghose with co-stars P. C. Barua, Durgadas Bannerjee, Khitish Roy Choudhary, Umasashi, Biren Ghosh and produced by Indian Kinema Arts, Calcutta. In 1933, she was cast in a religious film, ''

Radha Krishna Radha-Krishna (IAST , sa, राधा कृष्ण) are collectively known within Hinduism as the combined forms of feminine as well as the masculine realities of God. Krishna and Radha are the primeval forms of God and his pleasure potenc ...

'', directed by Priyanath N. Ganguly and

Tulsi Lahiri Tulsi Lahiri (7 April 1897 – 22 June 1959) was a Bengali actor, director and play writer. Early life Lahiri was born in 1897 in a zamindar family of Naldanga village, Rangpur of British India. He passed B.A and B.L and started his lawyer caree ...

. Her co-stars were

Dhiraj Bhattacharya Dhiraj Bhattacharya (5 November 1905 - 1959) was an actor of Bengali and Hindi cinema who began in silent films. He was also a theater personality and writer. Early life Bhattacharya was born in a zamindar family of Panjia village, near Jessore ...

, Indubala, Amar Choudhary and Kamala Jharia. An East India Film Company production, it had music by Sunderdas Bhatia. ''Shaher Ka Jadoo'' in 1934 was a debut acting film for Motilal and was written and directed by Kali Prasad Ghose. The main stars in this social were Sabita, Kumar,

Sitara Devi Sitara Devi (named Dhanlakshm; 8 November 1920 – 25 November 2014) was an Indian dancer of the classical Kathak style of dancing, a singer, and an actress. She was the recipient of several awards and accolades, and performed at several prest ...

K. C. Dey Krishna Chandra Dey (24 August 1893 – 28 November 1962), better known as K.C. Dey, was an Indian music director, music composer, musician, singer, actor, and music teacher born in Calcutta (now Kolkata). He was S.D. Burman's first musical te ...

, Miss Gulzar and Tarabai. The film was produced by

. She then acted in

Ezra Mir Ezra Mir (26 October 1903 – 7 March 1993) ( fl. 1924–1993) was an Indian film-maker, known for his documentary films. Mir changed his Jewish birth name, Edwyn Meyers, to Ezra Mir because he felt his original name "lacked Indianness". After ...

's ''Farzande Hind'' also called ''Phantom of the Hills'', an action drama film. The film starred Sabita with Jal Merchant, Yakub, Nyampally. Produced by Sagar, the music was composed by S. P. Rane. '' Grihalakshmi'' (Educated Wife) (1934) was an early woman-centric film and was a remake of the earlier silent film ''Bhaneli Bhamini'' (1927). Directed by

, it was produced by Sagar and had music by S. P. Rane. Her co-stars were Jal Merchant, Yakub, K. C. Dey and Lalita Devulkar. Her last film in 1934 was ''Chandra Gupta'' directed by

A. R. Kardar Abdur Rashid Kardar (1904–1989) was an Indian film actor, director and producer. He is credited with establishing the film industry in the Bhati Gate locality of Lahore, British India (now in Pakistan).Gul Hamid Gul Hamid (1905-1936) was an Indian actor. He started his acting career in silent films and later played leading roles in talkies. He had many honors to his credit. He acted in ''Heer Ranjha'', the first film produced in Punjabi and in '' Seet ...

, Nazir, Mazhar Khan and

. Produced by East India Film Company, it had music by

From 1935-1943 she acted in over fifteen films, all directed by Sarvottam Badami, with the exception of ''Silver King'', cited as one of the best stunt films of its time. It was directed by C. M. Luhar and starred Motilal with music by Pransukh Nayak. Badami and Sabita left Sagar Movietone to form Sudama Pictures in association with Ranjit Pictures. In 1935, Sabita acted in Badami's film, based on

K. M. Munshi Kanhaiyalal Maneklal Munshi (; 30 December 1887 – 8 February 1971), popularly known by his pen name Ghanshyam Vyas, was an Indian independence movement activist, politician, writer and educationist from Gujarat state. A lawyer by profession, ...

's story, '' Vengeance Is Mine'' (Ver Nu Vasulat). It co-starred Kumar, Yakub,

, and

Mehboob Khan Mehboob Khan (born Mehboob Khan Ramzan Khan; 9 September 1907
at filmreference.com. – 28 ...

in a small role. Music director was S. P. Rane. In '' Dr. Madhurika'' she played an emancipated doctor opposite Motilal, with music by Pransukh Nayak and Ashok Ghosh. Some of the other successful films in the 1930s include '' Grama Kanya'' (1936), '' Kokila'' (1937) written by Ramanlal Vasantlal Desai, '' Kulvadhu'' (1937), '' Teen Sau Din Ke Baad'' also called ''300 Days & After'' (1939) a modern romantic drama in which Sabita's acting received a positive critique from Baburao Patel as an "artiste of great calibre", in a "light-hearted a portrayal of her difficult role" and that "she easily takes away all the laurels for acting". '' Ladies Only'' was a 1939 comedy film directed by Badami and starred Bibbo, Prabha Devi and Sabita playing three girls from different states of India, all in love with the hero played by Surendra. This was the last comedy film Badami made for Sagar Movietone, before he left them after this film to form Sudama Pictures.Narwekar2012, p.54 Sabita acted in the next comedy film directed by Badami, this time for Sudama pictures. ''

'' (1939) was based on the MGM produced,

Edward Buzzell Edward Buzzell (November 13, 1895 – January 11, 1985) was an American film actor and director whose credits include ''Child of Manhattan (film), Child of Manhattan'' (1933); ''Honolulu (1939 film), Honolulu'' (1939); the Marx Brothers fil ...

directed film ''

Paradise for Three ''Paradise for Three'', titled ''Romance for Three'' in the United Kingdom, is a 1938 romantic comedy film starring Frank Morgan as a wealthy industrialist who decides to find out about his German workers by temporarily living among them incognit ...

'' (1938).RajadhyakshaWillemen2014, p. 50 The music direction was by

Gyan Dutt Gyan Dutt was one of the most prominent music directors in Bollywood in the 1940s. He was music director for films such as ''Thokar'' (1939), '' Achhut'' (1940), '' Bhakta Surdas'' (1942), ''Sunehre Din'' (1949) and '' Ghayal'' (1951). Many of hi ...

and starred Motilal as the crossword puzzle winner who falls in love with Sabita's character.

1940s

'' Sajani'' (1940) was one of the first "socially relevant film(s)" that Badami made for Sudama pictures. It starred Sabita with

Prithviraj Kapoor Prithviraj Kapoor (born Prithvinath Kapoor; 3 November 1906 – 29 May 1972) was an Indian actor who is also considered to be one of the founding figures of Hindi cinema. He was associated with IPTA as one of its founding members and establish ...

and Snehprabha Pradhan. '' Chingari'' (1940) a romantic melodrama from Sudama Productions with director Sarvottam Badami and co-starred

. The film was highly recommended by

Baburao Patel Baburao Patel (1904–1982) was an Indian publisher and writer, associated with films and politics. Career He was the editor and publisher of India's first film trade magazine, ''Filmindia'', the first edition of which was published in 1935. B ...

editor of ''

Filmindia ''filmindia'' is an Indian monthly magazine covering Indian cinema and published in English language. Started by Baburao Patel in 1935, ''filmindia'' was the first English film periodical to be published from Bombay. The magazine was reportedl ...

'' as a contender for 1940 Award of the Film Journalists' Association Of India. '' Bambai Ki Sair'' also called ''Holiday in Bombay'' (1941) was directed by Badami for Sudama Productions and co-starred

Shobhana Samarth Shobhana Samarth (17 November 1916 – 9 February 2000) 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. She started in ...

and Arun. The film was reportedly "creating new box-office records at the Imperial Cinema when it was released". In 1947, she starred in ''Sarai Ke Bahar'' also known as ''Inquilab'' which is stated to be the only film directed by the famous Urdu writer Krishan Chander. It had lyrics by Niaz Haider and Vishwamitter Adil, with music by D. C. Dutt.GulazāraChatterjee2003, p. 312

Influence

*She's stated to have influenced

, who had joined the Board Of the British Dominion Film Company and acted in a few silent films, to start his own company. According to Chatterji, "He was inspired to become independent". After his return to Calcutta from Paris, Barua set up the Barua Film Unit. The first film under this banner was ''Aparadhi'' (1931), directed by Debaki Bose, with Sabita cast as the heroine. The film went on to become a "critical success". *She was one of the earliest female artists to write about film acting as a decent profession for ladies from respectable families. In a letter to the ''Filmland'' English weekly, November 1931 issue, titled "Why Shouldn't Respectable Ladies Join the Films", she countered claims of immorality and low moral standards of producers and directors, raised by an anonymous actress in the September 1931 issue, "Should Respectable Ladies Join Films". She stated that "the attitude a man takes towards a woman is governed by the latter's own integrity, by her actions, words and manner". She went on to state that people had a "mid-victorian conception" of women on stage and that "A Lady Artiste" was perhaps herself to blame for any unwanted advances (author).

Filmography

List:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Devi, Sabita 1914 births 1965 deaths People from Lahore Indian film actresses Actresses in Hindi cinema 20th-century Indian actresses Actresses from Mumbai