Devika Rani

Devika Rani ( Hindi, देविका रानी, Devika Rani, born 30 March 1908 in Waltair, Andhra Pradesh, † March 8, 1994 in Bangalore, Karnataka, real name: Devika Rani Roerich Choudhuri ) was an Indian film actress and producer. It is one of the pioneers of Bollywood film.

In the 1920s she moved to London to study architecture. Here she met Himansu Rai and designed the sets for the 1925 first film Prem Sanyas ( The Light of Asia / The Light of Asia ) by Franz Osten, 1929, she married. Devika Rani played the lead role in the movie Karma (1933 ) and was henceforth be seen as an actress in the productions of her husband. The following year they went back to India and founded the production company in Mumbai Bombay Talkies.

From 1935 they produced Hindi films, often under the direction of east and with a high technical level. Rani was together with Ashok Kumar since Achhut Kanya (1936 ) the growth driver of Bombay Talkies. The film met with audiences and critics alike to overwhelming response.

After Himansu Rai's death in 1940 she took over as head of film production. By 1943, they still even appeared as an actress, then she practiced only organizational tasks. Her discoveries include the actor Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Guru Dutt.

Devika Rani married in 1945 in second husband, the Russian painter Svetoslav Roerich, the son of Nicholas and Helena Roerich, and lived there until her death on her country estate in Bangalore. For its services, for the Indian film, she received the Padma Shri in 1958 and in 1970 was awarded the very first Dadasaheb Phalke Award.