Dadasaheb Phalke

Dhundiraj Govind Phalke (Marathi: धुंडीराज गोविंद फाळके), popularly known as Dadasaheb Phalke (Marathi: दादासाहेब फाळक) ( pronunciation ) (30 April 1870 – 16 February 1944), was an Indian producer-director-screenwriter, known as the Father of Indian cinema. Starting with his debut film, Raja Harishchandra in 1913, now known as India's first full-length feature, he made 95 movies and 26 short films in his career spanning 19 years, till 1937, including his most noted works: Mohini Bhasmasur (1913), Satyavan Savitri (1914), Lanka Dahan (1917), Shri Krishna Janma (1918) and Kaliya Mardan (1919).

The Dadasaheb Phalke Award, for lifetime contribution to cinema, was instituted in his honour by the Government of India in 1969. The award is one of the most prestigious awards in Indian cinema and is the highest official recognition for film personalities in the country. A postage stamp bearing his face was released by India Post to honour him in 1971. An honorary award from the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Mumbai was introduced in the year 2001, for lifetime achievement in Indian cinema.

Dadasaheb Phalke Award

The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India's highest award in cinema. It is presented annually at the National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals, an organisation set up by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The recipient is honoured for their "outstanding contribution to the growth and development of Indian cinema" and is selected by a committee consisting of eminent personalities from the Indian film industry.As of 2014, the award comprises a Swarna Kamal (Golden Lotus) medallion, a shawl, and a cash prize of ₹1,000,000 (US$15,000).

First presented in 1969, the award was introduced by the Government of India to commemorate Dadasaheb Phalke's contribution to Indian cinema. Phalke (1870–1944), who is popularly known as and often regarded as "the father of Indian cinema", was an Indian film-maker who directed India's first full-length feature film, Raja Harishchandra (1913).

The first recipient of the award was actress Devika Rani, who was honoured at the 17th National Film Awards. As of 2014, there have been 46 awardees. Among those, actor Prithviraj Kapoor is the sole posthumous recipient. His actor-filmmaker son, Raj Kapoor, accepted the award on his behalf at the 19th National Film Awards in 1971 and was himself a recipient in 1987 at the 35th National Film Awards ceremony.Bommireddy Narasimha Reddy (1974) and Bommireddy Nagi Reddy (1986); Raj Kapoor (1987) and Shashi Kapoor (2014);Lata Mangeshkar (1989) and Asha Bhosle (2000) along with Baldev Raj Chopra (1998) and Yash Chopra (2001) are the siblings who have won the award. The most recent recipient of the award is actor Shashi Kapoor who was honoured at the 62nd National Film Awards ceremony.

Raja Harishchandra

Raja Harishchandra is a 1913 Indian silent film, directed and produced by Dadasaheb Phalke, and is the first full-length Indian feature film. The film was based on the legend of Raja Harishchandra, recounted in the Ramayana and Mahabharata. Although a silent film with intertitles in Marathi, English and Hindi, its cast and staff were Marathi people and it is therefore regarded as the first Marathi film.

The film marked a historic benchmark in the film industry in India. Only one print of the film was made and shown at the Coronation Cinematograph. It was a commercial success and paved the way for more such films.

Plot

The film opens with a scene of a tableaux patterned on the painting by Raja Ravi Varma, of Raja Harishchandra and his wife with their son. The film revolves around the noble and righteous king, Harishchandra, who first sacrifices his kingdom, followed by his wife and eventually his children to honour his promise to the sage Vishwamitra. Though, in the end, pleased by his high morals, the Gods restore his former glory, and further bestow him with divine blessings.

Shashi Kapoor

Shashi Kapoor, born as Balbir Raj Prithviraj Kapoor on 18 March 1938, is an Indian film actor and film producer. He has also been a film director and assistant director in the Hindi film industry.

Shashi Kapoor is a member of the Kapoor family, a film dynasty in India's Bollywood cinema. He has appeared in a large number of Hindi language films as well as in a few English-language films.

In 2011, he was honoured with the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India for his contributions to Art-Cinema. In 2015, he was awarded the 2014 Dadasaheb Phalke Award, making him the third member of his family to receive the highest award in Indian Cinema after Prithviraj Kapoor and Raj Kapoor.

Career

Child artist

Kapoor was born in Calcutta (now Kolkata) during British Raj. He is the younger brother of Raj Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor, the son of Prithviraj Kapoor, the widower of Jennifer Kendal, and the father of Karan Kapoor, Kunal Kapoor, and Sanjana Kapoor. From the age of four, Shashi Kapoor acted in plays directed and produced by his father Prithviraj Kapoor, while travelling with Prithvi Theatres. He started acting in films as a child in the late 1940s, appearing in commercial films including Sangram (1950), Dana Paani (1953) under the name of Shashiraj as there was another actor by the same name who used to act in mythological films as child artiste. His best known performances as child artist were in Aag (1948) and Awaara (1951), where he played the younger version of the characters played by his older brother Raj Kapoor and in Sangram (1950), where he played younger version of Ashok Kumar. He worked in four Hindi films as a child artist from 1948 to 1954.

Dilip Kumar

Dilip Kumar (born Muhammad Yusuf Khan on 11 December 1922) is an Indian film actor also known as Tragedy King, and described as "the ultimate method actor" by Satyajit Ray. He debuted as an actor in the film Jwar Bhata in 1944 produced by Bombay Talkies. His career has spanned over six decades and with over 60 films. He starred in films of a variety of genres such as the romantic Andaz (1949), the swashbuckling Aan (1952), the dramatic Devdas (1955), the comical Azaad (1955), the historical Mughal-e-Azam (1960) and the social Ganga Jamuna (1961).

In 1976, Dilip Kumar took a five-year break from film performances and returned with a character role in the film Kranti (1981) and continued his career playing leading roles in films such as Shakti (1982), Karma (1986) and Saudagar (1991). His last film was Qila (1998).

He is the winner of 9 Filmfare Awards and is the first recipient of Filmfare Best Actor Award (1954). He still holds the record for the most number of Filmfare awards won for that category with 8 wins. Critics acclaimed him among one of the greatest actors in the history of Hindi cinema.