Shantaram, V. (1901-1990), was a pioneer of Indian cinema and one of its major directors. His first films were silent, but he went on to make some of the first Indian films with sound and some of the first Indian films in color. He made films in several languages, including Hindi, Marathi, and Tamil.
Rajaram Vankudre Shantaram was born in Kolhapur, now in Maharashtra state. He began working at the local cinema while in his teens. He joined the Maharashtra Film Company, where he assisted in all aspects of film production. He founded a film company with several partners, based in Kolhapur. He directed one of the first Marathi films with sound, Ayodhyecha Raja (The King of Ayodhya, 1932). Ayodhyecha Raja was a groundbreaking film, for it raised cinematic language beyond the theatrical staginess that had prevailed until then.
In 1933, Shantaram’s company moved to Pune and began making films in studios, using ever more elaborate sets and costumes. In Amar Jyoti (1936), Shantaram used the new cinematic developments of back-projection (the use of translucent background screens behind actors to produce location sequences) and playback singers (singers whose voices are heard instead of those of the actors on screen). Shantaram’s films of this era often tell stories of women who rebel against the traditional role of women in Indian society. Duniya Na Mane (1937) tells of a woman who objects to her arranged marriage to an old widower, and Aadmi (1939) is a realistic portrait of the struggles of a prostitute against the evil around her.
Shantaram’s first film made by his own production company was Shakuntala (1943), based on the play by the ancient Sanskrit dramatist Kalidasa. This was the first Indian film to be commercially released outside India. Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje (The Tinkling of Anklets, 1955) was his first film in color, and the first of a long line of song and dance spectaculars. Do Aankhe Bara Haath (1957), the story of a jailer who rehabilitates dangerous criminals, won the Silver Bear award at the Berlin International Film Festival. Shantaram continued making films through the 1960’s and 1970’s, and his last film, Jhanjhaar, was completed in 1988. His autobiography, Shantarama, was published in 1987.
