Sumitra Devi (actress)
Sumitra Devi | |
|---|---|
Sumitra Devi | |
| Born | Nilima Chattopadhyay 22 July 1923 |
| Died | 28 August 1990 (aged 67) |
| Citizenship | Indian |
| Alma mater | Deshbandhu Girls' High School, Kolkata |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active |
|
| Era | 1940s 1950s |
| Notable work | Sandhi Meri Bahen Pather Dabi Abhijog Devi Chowdhurani Swami Mamta Saheb Bibi Golam Jagte Raho Andhare Alo Joutuk Kinu Gowalar Gali |
| Spouses |
|
| Children | 1 |
| Awards | BFJA Awards |
Sumitra Devi (ⓘ; 22 July 1923 – 28 August 1990) was an Indian actress who is recognised for her work in Hindi as well as Bengali cinema during the 1940s and 1950s. Widely regarded as one of the greatest actresses of her time, she is best remembered for her role in the 1952 Hindi film Mamta directed by Dada Gunjal. She was the recipient of BFJA Award for Best Actress for two times. She was one of the exquisite beauties of her time and has been regarded as the most beautiful woman of her time by veterans such as Pradeep Kumar and Uttam Kumar.
In 1943 she was summoned for an interview and look test in the office of New Theatres and was finally cast opposite K. L. Saigal in Hemchander Chander’s Meri Bahen (1944). During the making of this film she was offered to play the lead in Apurba Mitra’s Bengali film Sandhi (1944) which happened to be her debut film and a major commercial success, earning her the BFJA Award for Best Actress in 1945. She became a top-billed actress of Bengali cinema because of the commercial success of her films such as Abhijog (1947), Pather Dabi (1947), Pratibad (1948), Jayjatra (1948), Swami (1949) and Devi Chowdhurani (1949). She went on to star in a number Bollywood films such as Mashal (1950), Mamta (1952), Deewana (1952), Ghungroo (1952), Mayurpankh (1954), Chor Bazaar (1954), Raj Yogi Bharthari (1954) and Jagte Raho (1956). She is idolized for her role as the beautiful alcoholic wife of a landlord in Kartik Chattopadhyay's cult classic Saheb Bibi Golam (1956) which is an adaptation of Bimal Mitra's classic novel of the same name. Her portrayal of Bijali, a nautch girl with a bereaved heart in Haridas Bhattacharya’s National Award winning Bengali film Aandhare Alo (1957) earned an overwhelming critical acclaims. She was also acclaimed for her roles in films such as Ekdin Ratre (1956), Khela Bhangar Khela (1957), Nilachaley Mahaprabhu (1957), Joutuk (1958) and Kinu Gowalar Gali (1964). In the late fifties, she was invited to the Asian Film Festival in China as a delegate from India.