Magic of Movies - 1937

1.Atma Tarang

Atma Tarang is a 1937 Hindi social drama film directed by Sohrab Modi.This film and Khan Bahadur made the same year were the first films produced under Modi's newly established banner, Minerva Movietone (1936). The music was composed by Habib Khan with art direction by Rusi K. Banker. The film starred the singer-actor Feroz Dastur in the role of Mohan, with Sohrab Modi, Prabha, and Vasant Pahelwan.  C. Ramchandra, the famous music composer was a harmonium accompanist for Minerva Movietone music directors like Habib Khan and Bindu Khan. He also acted in a small role in Atma Tarang and in the earlier Said-e-Havas (1936).
The story involved the topic of Brahmacharya, which was Modi's preference for his first film under the Minerva banner, as he was influenced at that time by his interest in the Ramakrishna Mission.
Cast
Sohrab Modi,Prabha,Feroze Dastur,Vasant Pahelwan,Eruch Tarapore,Gulzar,S. L. Puri
Box-Office
According to Modi in a 1988 Films Division of India biographical film- Sohrab Modi by Yash Chaudhary, Atma Tarang was the biggest flop he ever made. Modi stated that while waiting in the Minerva Theatre (where the film was released), Bombay, he observed there were hardly 20-30 people in the audience. Four men approached him and congratulated a by-then dejected Modi, and told him to continue making good films like Atma Tarang and he would reach the top one day. He later found out that the four men were judges of the Bombay High Court.
2. Duniya Na Mane

Kunku (Marathi title) 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 also released in Hindi as Duniya Na Mane (The Unexpected). The movie went on to become both a critical and commercial success, and was shown at the Venice International Film Festival. The film is now hailed for "its daring attack on the treatment of women in Indian society." and depiction of child marriage. For film's lead actress, Shanta Apte, it was third most memorable performance in a row, after V.Shantaram's previous classics, Amrit Manthan (1934) and Amar Jyoti (1936). Besides other songs, she also sang a full-fledged English song in the film: "A Psalm of Life", written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807–1882).
The basic storyline revolves around a young woman, Nirmala (Shanta Apte) rebelling against her marriage to a much older widower, Kaka Saheb (Keshavrao Date), as was the practice in those days. The story is based on a novel by Shri. Narayan Hari Apte. It reminds us instinctively of the story of Sharada, a play by Deval which had long been a classic of Marathi theatre. Neera, a young girl, is married off to an old widower by her foster-parents, an uncle and his orthodox wife. The deal is obviously motivated by considerations of money. The shock of the marriage is too much for the girl, but she bravely tries to accommodate herself in the house. The widower deceives himself into believing that he is still not old enough to have lost his manhood. His college-going son tries to flirt with his young stepmother, while a widowed daughter of his sympathises with her in her woe. The marriage does not work. Some cheer is added to Neera's life through the company of a teenage girl belonging to the household. However, when the old man fully realises the implications of his action, he commits suicide, leaving the girl he has married against her will to go her own way.
Music
Shantaram Athavale wrote the lyrics to the music of Keshavrao Bhole.
Cast
Shanta Apte as Nirmala / Neera,Keshavrao Date as Kakasaheb,,Raja Nene as Jugat,,Vimala Vasishta as the Aunt,Shakuntala Paranjpye as Sushila,Master Chhotu
3.Gangavataran

Gangavataran (English: The Descent of the Ganges) is a 1937 Indian film by Dadasaheb Phalke, who is known as the "father of Indian cinema". It was the first sound film and the last film to be directed by Phalke. When Phalke directed this film, he was 67 years old. He directed Gangavataran on behalf of Kolhapur Movietone.
Gangavataran is based on the tales of the Puranas, a genre of important Hindu, Jain and Buddhist religious texts. The film used special effects to show mythological miracles and fantasy scenes, credited to Babaraya Phalke, son of Dadasaheb. Gangavataran depicted the Hindu deity Shiva, and the divine sage from the Vaisnava tradition, Narada, played by Chitnis and Suresh Pardesi respectively.
The film tells the Hindu mythical story of river Ganges's descent to Earth. For absolution of his ancestor's sins Bhagiratha vows to bring the heavenly river (Ganga) to the Earth. Pleased with his tapasya, Lord Brahma agrees on sending Ganga. But He asks Bhagiratha to pursue Lord Shiva, as only Shiva could break Ganga's fall. Proud with her heavenly presence, Ganga agreed to descend only because of Brahma's orders. Her pride made her believe that her fall would only destroy the Earth. But then Shiva trapped her tight in His hair and only let her go when she asked for forgiveness. Her gentle flow after release then absolved Bhagiratha's ancestors.
It took two years to complete the production of Gangavataran. The production cost of this film was two and a half lakhs rupees in contemporary currency value. The film was screened on 6 August 1937 at the Royal Opera House in Mumbai. Gangavataran was the first Indian sound film to be screened at the Royal Opera House.
Gangavataran was a mythological film. When Phalke directed this film, other filmmakers such as V. Shantaram were directing films with social reform as a thematic element. Gangavataran was a flop in the box office. Encyclopaedia of Hindi cinema describes Gangavataran as the "last desperate attempt" by Phalke to direct a film at a time when big-budget Hindi films were flourishing which were characterized by "rural romances with easy-to-follow dialogues, catchy songs, folk dances, dramas of misunderstanding" and the first pioneers of the Hindi film industry were quickly fading away from public memory.
4.Izzat

Izzat (Honour) is a 1937 Hindi film social drama, directed by Franz Osten. The film was produced by Himanshu Rai for Bombay Talkies.The credit roll of Izzat attributes the story to Dr. G. Nundy, adapted for screen by J. Nundy. The screenplay was by Niranjan Pal, who handled the story section of Bombay Talkies.J. S. Casshyap wrote the songs and dialogues and was assisted in dialogue direction by S. I. Hassan. The music was composed by Saraswati Devi, with actor Mumtaz Ali doubling as the choreographer. The film starred Ashok Kumar with Devika Rani in the lead, while the rest of the cast included Mumtaz Ali, Madhurika, Kamtaprasad, Chandraprabha, and P. F. Pithawala.
The film involves two "warring clans", the Marathas and the Bhil tribe, along with a young couple in love, much in "a Romeo and Juliet" style story setting.
The Marathas and the Bhils have been living in peace and mutual respect for a period of twenty-five years, due to the efforts of the two chiefs, the Maratha Patil and the Bhil chief Maruti. The Maratha Patil's son died at a young age and his nephew, Balaji, is being considered by the Patil to replace him. However, Balaji is against any sort of cordial relationship with the Bhils, and opposes any favourable treatment given to them. This upsets the Patil, who falls ill. He realises the consequence of Balaji succeeding him and regrets his decision made earlier to that effect. He wants to send a message to the Diwan (Chief Minister) that Balaji should not become the Patil following his death. The letter is intercepted by Balaji. The old chief dies, making Balaji the new Patil.
The story then focuses on the animosity that develops between the two clans. Balaji usurps the Bhils land and makes them work for him. Maruti, the chief of the Bhils and Kanhayia's (Ashok Kumar) father asks the Bhils to leave. The clash between the two clans turns Kanhaiya into a bandit, who is then hunted by the Marathas. When Balaji tries to molest Radha (Devika Rani), Kanhaiya's beloved, Kanhaiya kills him and lets himself be captured by the Maratha police as he does not want any further atrocities against his tribe. He is sentenced to be hanged. Radha comes to meet him in the jail but dies. Kanhaiya goes to his hanging being hailed as a martyr.
Cast
Devika Rani as Radha,Ashok Kumar as Kanhaiya,Mumtaz Ali,Madhurika,M. Nazir,Kamtaprasad
Chandraprabha,P. F. Pithawala,Sunita Devi,N. M. Joshi,Atheramuddin,Vimala
5.Jagirdar

Jagirdar (Landlord) is a 1937 Urdu/Hindi romantic melodrama film directed by Mehboob Khan, and starring Bibbo, Motilal, Surendra, Yakub, Pande, Sankatha Prasad, Pesi Patel and Maya Banerjee.
The film was produced by Sagar Movietone and was Anil Biswas' first major venture as an independent music director. After the success of Manmohan, Anil Biswas replaced Ashok Ghosh as an acclaimed composer continuously producing a range of successful music. The story was written by Babubhai Mehta with dialogues credited to Zia Sarhadi. The lyricists were Zia Sarhadi and Pandit Indra Sharma.
Neela (Bibbo) and Jagirdar (Surendra) marry each other without anyone’s knowledge. However, Jagirdar goes missing at sea presumed dead. Neela realises she’s pregnant and when the child is born he’s called illegitimate. Shripat (Pande), a poor farmer marries her and helps take care of her son Ramesh. On his return Jagirdar is angry to find Neela married to Shripat and a fight ensues. When Shripat is killed by Banwarilal everyone assumes Jagirdar is the murderer. Soon with Ramesh’s help they fight the villains with the truth revealed. Ramesh finally accepts Jagirdar as his father.
Cast
Bibbo as Neela,Surendra as Jagirdar,Motilal as Ramesh,Yakub as Narayanlal,Pande as Shripat,Zia Sarhadi,Bhudo Advani,Maya Banerjee,Sankatha Prasad,Ram Marathe

6.Kisan Kanya

Kisan Kanya was a 1937 Hindi Cinecolor feature film which was directed by Moti B. Gidwani and produced by Ardeshir Irani of Imperial Pictures. It is largely remembered by the Indian public on account of it being India's first indigenously made colour
Film pioneer Ardeshir Irani, who had produced notable films as Nala Damayanti (1920) which was India's first international co-production (with Italy) and India's first talkie Alam Ara (1931) conceived the idea of producing a color film. The result of his efforts was the color film Kisan Kanya made with the Cinecolor process whose process rights Irani had obtained from an American company.
V. Shantaram had earlier produced a Marathi film Sairandhri (1933) which had scenes in color. However, the film was processed and printed in Germany. Kisan Kanya was, therefore, India's first indigenously made color film.
Plot
Kisan Kanya was based on a novel by Saadat Hasan Manto[6] and focussed on the plight of poor farmers.The story revolved on the life of a poor peasant Ram (Nisar) who was being ill-treated by his landlord Ghani.Eventually, Ghani is murdered and Ram becomes the prime suspect in the eyes of the public. The film performed moderately at the box-office.
Cast
Padmadevi,Jillo,Ghulam Mohammed,Nissar,Syed Ahmed,Ghani

7.Kokila

Kokila (Nightingale) is a 1937 Hindi social family drama film directed by Sarvottam Badami. The music was composed by Anil Biswas with lyrics written by Siddiqui and Zia Sarhadi.[2] The story was adapted from the well-known novel Kokila, written by Gujarati writer Ramanlal Vasantlal Desai. The film starred Motilal, Sabita Devi, Shobhna Samarth, Maya Bannerjee, Sitara Devi, Pesi Patel, Siddiqui and Kayam Ali.
Cast
Motilal,Sabita Devi,Shobhna Samarth,Sitara Devi,Sankata Prasad,Maya Bannerjee,Pesi Patel,Kayam Ali,Siddiqui







Shobhna Samarth

Shobhana Samarth was born on 17 November 1916 in Bombay, British India, as Saroj Shilotri. An only child, her father Prabhakar Shilotri was a "pioneer banker" having started the Shilotri Bank in Bombay. Her mother Rattan Bai, in 1936, acted in the film Frontiers of Freedom, in Marathi (Swarajyachya Seemewar). Shobhna studied initially in Cathedral School, Bombay, for one year. In 1928, her father suffered financial losses and the business went into liquidation. The family then shifted to Bangalore in 1931, where Shobhana attended Baldwin Girls High School. To earn a living, her father gave private tuitions, while her mother taught in a Marathi school. In December that year, her father died of a heart attack and the mother and daughter returned to Bombay to stay with her maternal uncle. Shobhana studied in a convent school, but was unable to complete her matriculation as she had joined films by then. Her uncle was opposed to her joining films, and she and her mother moved out of his home (ironically his daughter and Shobhana's cousin Nalini Jaywant herself became an actress. Shobhana taught privately to make money. She met her future husband Kumarsen Samarth during this time, who had just returned from Germany and was keen on directing films. They got engaged and she started work on her first film.
Shobana's first film was "Orphans Of Society" (1935), also called Nigahe Nafrat or Vilasi Ishwar for Kolhapur Cinetone, directed by Vinayak and starred Vinayak and Baburao Pendharkar. The film was not a success, but Shobhana was critically acclaimed for her role. The film was bilingual, made in Urdu and Marathi. Shobhana claims in an interview that she did not know any Urdu at that time of filming, speaking the dialogues by rote and it was only later that she picked up the language. She was with Kolhapur Cinetone for thirteen months, but acted in one film.
She left Kolhapur Cinetone and joined Sagar Movietone (Sagar Film Company) and she acted in one film called Kokila (1937), directed by Sarvottam Badami, starring Motilal, Sabita Devi and Sitara Devi. The other film for Sagar was Do Diwane (1936), directed by C. M. Luhar and co-starring Motilal, Yakub and Aruna Devi. By the end of 1937, Shobhana left Sagar and joined General Films, acting in Industrial India (Nirala Hindustan), directed by Mohan Sinha with Prem Adib and Wasti. The second film for them was Pati Patni (1939) directed by V. M. Gunjal with co-stars Yakub, Sitara Devi and Wasti. By 1939, she had joined Hindustan Cinetone, making four films with them, which included Kaun Kisi ka (1939), Saubhagya (1940) by C. M. Luhar and Apni Nagariya (1940) by V. M. Gunjal. She then worked in a film directed by her husband, Kumar Sen Samarth, called Ghar Javai (1941), where she was cast with Damuanna Malvankar.
In 1942 came her career-defining film Bharat Milap, directed by Vijay Bhatt and starring Durga Khote as Kaikeyi, Shobhana as Seeta and Prem Adib as Ram. Following this was Ram Rajya in 1943, and Shobhana became identified as Seeta, leading to several other films where they recreated the roles. Shobhana as Sita and Prem Adib as Rama became extremely popular and were accepted by the audiences and had them featuring as Rama and Sita on calendars.
Shobhana was married to director and cinematographer Kumarsen Samarth from Vile Parle (E), Mumbai. They had three daughters, Nutan, Tanuja and Chatura and a son, Jaideep.
She died from cancer in 2000.

8.President

President is a 1937 Hindi social romantic drama film from New Theatres. The Bengali version was called Didi. The direction, screenplay and cinematography were by Nitin Bose. The film starred K. L. Saigal, Leela Desai, Kamlesh Kumari, Jagdish Sethi, Prithviraj Kapoor and Bikram Kapoor. The story according to the credit roll of the film is "A tale of love and greater love" developed on an idea by M. M. Begg. It was a love triangle with a social content that highlighted the conditions of the mill workers. It was also the first film to show a liberated educated woman managing her own factory.
Prabhavati’s (Kamlesh Kumari) parents died when she was very young and the onus of looking after the Prabhavati Cotton Mills Ltd. has come to her. Her entire focus is on the factory and she is a strict and hardworking proprietor. Her only close companion is Dr. Sethi but even here there is a reserve. Prakash (K. L. Saigal) works at one of the machines in the mill. He finds that the machines they are working on are old and dangerous. He designs a safer and more efficient one and takes the design to the President of the company. She gets angry at his suggestion that the machines in her factory are dangerous and fires him. Prakash is out of a job and looking desperately for any form of income. He meets a young girl Sheela (Leela Desai) outside a girl’s hostel with whom he gets friendly. The girl unknown to him is Prabhavati’s younger sister. The day Prakash is sacked from his work, the man who took his place at the machine has an accident. This gets Prabhavati thinking and she goes to Prakash’s home to accept his design and re-instate him as head of the design unit. Over a period of time Prabhavati finds herself getting attracted to Prakash, without realising he’s in love with her sister Sheela. During a conversation Sheela comes to know that Prabha loves Prakash. Sheela is devoted to her sister and feels deeply indebted to her for single-mindedly taking care of her and the factory. She leaves home and her attitude towards Prakash changes. Prakash unable to understand her behaviour takes out his frustration at work becoming despotic with the workers. The workers revolt and there is a showdown at the factory. Pratibha rushes to the factory; she manages to find what is troubling Prakash. Appalled at the situation she locks herself in her office and works herself into a state where she collapses.
Cast
K. L. Saigal,Leela Desai,Kamlesh Kumari,Prithviraj Kapoor,Jagdish Sethi,Bikram Kapoor,Nawab
Shabir Ali,Indu Mukherjee
K. L. Saigal And Songs
K. L. Saigal was regarded as the first super star of Indian Cinema with films like President (Didi in Bengali), Devdas and Street Singer leaving an impact on Hindi film music. President is cited as one of Saigal's finest films in which he sang one of his most memorable songs "Ik Bangla Bane Nyara".The lyrics of the song written by Kidar Sharma became an allegorical representation of the common man's dream of owning their own house.
Leela Desai

Leela Desai, aka Lila Desai, was an Indian actress in the 1930s and 1940s. She was the daughter of Umedram Lalbhai Desai and his second wife Satyabala Devi, a musician in the early 1900s.
Leela was born in Newark, New Jersey when her parents were on a 3-year American tour. Her father was a Gujarati and her mother was from Bihar, India. She grew up in India. She acted in 11 Indian movies and was the associate producer of the movie, Kabuliwali in 1961. In 1944, Leela also acted in the movie Kaliyan with her sister Ramola. Ramola also acted in the film Lalkar in the same year.
Formal education in classical Hindustani dancing under Sohanlal and Lacchumaharaj.Academic education in Music in Morrice College(Lucknow).Acted in the movie "Nagagnarayan" produced by Vishram Bedekar in 1943."Leela Desai had been invited by the students of the Intermediate College in 1941. Bangalore had the distinction of holding festivals of films made by New Theatres' and Prabhat Film Co." Lila Desai was a dancer and a follower of Sohan Lal.
"The third Kapal Kundala released after a decade from the first Kapal Kundala in 1939. This time the movie was directed by both Nitin Bose and Phani Majumdar. Leela Desai played the role for Kapal Kundala."
Phani Majumdar married Leela Desai's sister Monica Desai.
Leela Desai was trained in the "Bhatkhande Music Institute established in Lucknow in 1926 has played a vital role in training generations of performing artistes, dedicated gurus and gifted composers...Lucknow has contributed music directors, (like Naushad, Madan Mohan, Roshan), actors and actresses (like Kumar, Iftekar, Akhtari Bai, Bina Rai, Yashodhara Katju, Swaranlata), singers (Talat Mahmud, Anup Jalota, Dilraj Kaur, Krishna Kalle), writers (like Amritlal Nagar, Bhagawati Sharan Varma, Achala Nagar), lyricists and dancers. Lachhu Maharaj was a very successful choreographer for many films. Pahadi Sanyal, Leela Desai and Kamlesh Kumari of New Theatres at Calcutta were all trained here."
Lila Desai owned a house in Darjeeling called "Lily Cottage". Her mother Satyabala Devi lived there until her death. It is possible that Lila knew Manjula or Sumitra Sanyal in Darjeeling. Lila Desai is mentioned in Bollywood actress Sumitra Sanyal's site.
More about Leela Desai
"What shall be said of Leela Desai, who acted the part of the President’s sister, the mischievous school-girl, and who always took the active part in the love-making between her and Prakash Babu (Saigal)? I cannot find a single fault with her acting. She played up to Saigal splendidly. Even her eyes were most expressive. What naughtiness was in them? As a shameless hussy she could give points to any of your Hollywood actresses–and win. In the love-duet between her and Saigal it was she who always led. She was the personification of Mr. Bernerd Shaw’s pet notion that, in this eternal amorous game, it is the woman who leads the man on and not, as is commonly supposed, the other way about. From the moment she jumped down her school garden-wall and almost fell plump into the arms of Prakash Babu, who was sitting below chewing the end of his reflections anent his dismissal from his job, she never, in a manner of speaking, left him to himself. She would bring down the house with her: “Uske bad kya hua, Prakash Babu?” The poor man had to dance to her measure ever afterwards. When she found herself with him alone she gave us the impression of having fed on honey-dew and on the milk of paradise. Then, in addition to her sparkling dialogue and supremely ‘alive’ acting, she was gorgeous in her dancing performance. Her whole face was a mirror in which her thoughts were reflected. She was an imp of mischief from commencement to conclusion."

9.Vidyapati

Vidyapati is a 1937 Hindi biopic film directed by Debaki Bose for New Theatres. It starred Pahari Sanyal as Vidyapati. His costars in the film were Kanan Devi, Prithviraj Kapoor, Chhaya Devi, Leela Desai, K. C. Dey and Kidar Sharma. The music was by R. C. Boral and lyrics by Kidar Sharma. Debaki Bose and Qazi Nazrul Islam wrote the story, screenplay and dialogues. The story is about the Maithili poet and Vaishnava saint Vidyapati. The songs of the film became popular and the lyrics though encapsulating Vidyapati's poetry were considered bold for its time. This however ensured the film garnered crowds at the theatres making it a big success of 1937.
King Shiva Singha (Prithviraj Kapoor) and His queen Lakshmi (Chhaya Devi) invite the poet Vidyapati (Pahari Sanyal) to their palace. He arrives with his constant companion Anuradha (Kanan Devi). The queen finds herself getting attracted to Vidyapati’s poetry and falls in love with him. This causes great anguish to the king who in his distress abandons his responsibilities and turns to Anuradha. The troubled Queen decides to kill herself and when the Prime Minister gets to hear of it he encourages her as he feels that Vidyapati’s sensuous bold poetry has had a detrimental effect on the king. The king in the end sends for his queen through Anuradha. Standing near the statue of Shiva, the king and queen consume poison.
The film is thought to be Debaki Bose’s most adept directorial venture. The tight close-ups helped the narration of the story which focused on the poetry and songs. The films in those days tended to be heroine-centric and though the film was called Vidyapati the main star of the film was Kanan Devi. Her convincing performance became the main support of the film along with a strong script. Prithviraj Kapoor’s performance was rated high by Baburao Patel, the editor of Filmindia, while also appreciating the "newcomer" Mohammed Ishaq. He called Debaki Bose’s direction a "fine poem of art" and Bose "truly a great director". The film was used by Guru Dutt in his film Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959) as a tribute to the Studio Era by showing the character Suresh in the balcony of the theatre where Vidyapati is being watched by a packed audience.
Music
The music director R. C. Boral brought in western influences by making use of the organ and piano in his music direction. The impact was successful with popular as well as classic tunes being used and the songs were highly appreciated. The role of Anuradha which Kanan Devi enacted was created by Nazrul Islam. Her songs like "More Angana Mein Aaye Aali" and her duets with K. C. Dey made her the top female singing star on par with K. L. Saigal at New Theatres. Kidar Sharma left New Theatres following differences between him and Debaki Bose but not before making a tremendous name for himself following his lyrics in Devdas (1935) and Vidyapati.

10.Wahan

Wahan K. N. Kale Leela Chitnis, Chandra Mohan, Shanta Apte, Prahlad, Vasant Desai, Ulhas, Aruna Devi, Master Chhotu
This film mixes baroque period movie style with the primitivist iconography of Hollywood's biblical epics. The setting vaguely evokes an ancient Aryan society ruled by Kodandavarma (Chandramohan), a dictator committed to the ideals of Aryan justice. A stone statue of Justice collapses, threatening to crush many slaves. The situation is saved by the youthful Jeevan (Prahlad), the king of an aboriginal tribe. Jeevan then falls in love with Princess Jayanthi (Chitnis). Although mainly a romance, the film also addresses ideals of justice and morality. Its key characters include the villainous vice boss Madhuvrat (Chhotu) who plots against Kodandavarma and entraps Uttam (Ulhas), the designated heir to the throne, and the dancing girl Lata (Apte) who is forced to seduce Uttam so as to alleviate the slaves' suffering.

*you tube full movie Izzat, Prem Kahani, Duniya Na Mane, Toofani Tarzan.wahan available

Meharsultana and Asiq Hussain in 1937 talkie of Vishnu Cinetone's "Gulbadan".Dir-K Rathod, Cast-Ansuya, Kantilal pic.twitter.com/mg693DomFp

— Amar Nath Sharma (@ans_bajanama) February 23, 2018