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22nd September 1991 – Durga Khote, film actress and Dadasaheb Phalke awardee, passes away

YB WEB DESK. Dated: 9/22/2021 7:09:45 AM

The pioneering Indian actress Durga Khote, famous for her roles in Marathi and Hindi movies, breathed her last on 22nd September 1991. She was 86 years old and had achieved many landmarks in her long and illustrious career spanning more than 50 years, during which she acted in many theatrical shows and about 200 films. Her life was an inspiration to many, not only as one of the earliest women to act in Indian cinema, but also as a resolute woman who charted the course of her own life. Born on 14th January 1905, into a conservative Maharashtrian family in Mumbai, Durga Khote was married when she was quite young to Vishwanath Khote, a mechanical engineer and the son of a well-to-do family of contractors and stock brokers. They soon had two boys, however her husband passed away when she was just 26 and Durga Khote had to find the means to support herself and her young children. Durga was aware of the Marathi theatre industry and it was through her acquaintances in this sphere that she took her first steps in the nascent Marathi film industry. This was an unusual step for the time, since women from respectable families were not usually seen on stage or in films - in fact, most of the women's roles in early Marathi cinema were played by young men. Her first role was in a silent film Farebi Jaal in 1931. The Prabhat Film Company which produced this film then cast her in the first Marathi talking movie Ayodhyecha Raja in 1932. This film, also made in Hindi, was a huge success. Durga Khote's portrayal of the character Rani Taramati was very well appreciated by movie-goers of the time. Durga Khote went on to prove that she was not only a fine actress but also an independent woman when she broke away from the studio system where actors worked exclusively on contract for one studio and were paid a monthly salary. Durga Khote maintained a good relationship with the Prabhat Film Company but chose to work as an independent actor with other production companies of the time, such as Prakash Pictures and the East India Film Company and New Theatres which were based in Calcutta. Durga Khote was also deeply involved in the work of the group of playwrights and actors who were part of the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) and the Progressive Writers Association (PWA). Influenced by leftist ideology and humanist ideals, these groups of creative professionals played significant roles in the cultural life.