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Prabhat Film Company

March 30, 2023

Prabhat Film Company (popularly known as Prabhat Films) was an Indian film production company and film studios founded in 1929 by the noted film director V.Shantaram and his friends.

Prabhat Chitra
TypePrivate
IndustryIndian Film industry
Founded1 June 1929; 93 years ago (1929-06-01)
FounderVishnupant Govind Damle, V. Shantaram, S Fatelal, Keshav Rao Dhaibar, Seetaram Kulkarni[1]
Defunct13 October 1953; 69 years ago (1953-10-13)
Headquarters
Kolhapur, Pune
,
India (1933 onwards)
Key people
V. Shantaram
ServicesFilms
Websitewww.prabhatfilm.com

It was formed in Kolhapur, Maharashtra, India in 1929, towards the end of silent films' era, by the noted film director V. Shantaram, along with V.G. Damle, Keshav Rao Dhaibar, S. Fatelal and S.V. Kulkarni.[2] The company moved to Pune in 1933, where it established its own studio and produced a total of 45 films in both Marathi and Hindi over 27 years, including are Kunku (Duniya Na Mane in Hindi), Swarajyacha Toran also called Udaykal, based on Shivaji's life, Dharmatma on life of saint Eknath, Sant Tukaram, based on the saint-poet and social reformer, Shejari also called Padosi, on communal harmony, Manoos (a.k.a. Aadmi) about alcoholism and Amar Jyoti about woman's emancipation. While several companies such as, Imperial Film Company, Krishna Cinetone, East India Film Company, Madan Theatre, Ranjit, Wadia Movietone were very active during the advent of Talkie films in India, Prabhat, along with New Theatres of Kolkata, stood out for their excellence and social awareness.

Today, the Film and Television Institute of India Pune, at Law College Road, is situated in its former premises,[1][3] and houses the 'Prabhat Museum' which displays artefacts, original contracts and partnership deeds of Prabhat Film Company, along with costumes, properties, equipment, posters and stills.[4]

The University of Chicago Library has a collection of 27 films produced by the Prabhat Film Company between 1932 and 1949 [5]

History

Baburao Painter's Maharashtra Film Company, based in Kolhapur, had made a name for itself with its silent films in early 1920s. Close friends Vishnupant G Damle and Fateh Lal (Damle Mama and Saheb Mama) were very good artists and held posts with senior responsibility at the company.[6]

Baburao Pendharkar became the de facto head of operations because of Baburao Painter's distaste for financial matters. Pendharkar's cousin Shantaram Vanakudre (V. Shantaram) joined the company and became Baburao Painter's right-hand man.

 
Ayodhyecha Raja (1932), the first Marathi film, was made by Prabhat Films

In 1927–1928, the senior personnel became dissatisfied by Baburao Painter's increasingly lukewarm and erratic behaviour. Damle and Fateh Lal were thinking of starting their own company, as were V. Shantaram and Keshav Rao Dhaibar. The four of them got together, and with Sitaram Kulkarni, well-established jeweller in Kolhapur as their fifth partner and financier, started a new company on 1 June 1929, with an initial investment amount of Rs 15,000.[6] Baburao Pendharkar suggested the name Prabhat (meaning "Dawn"), and the other partners liked it.

Prabhat soon made a name for itself with silent films and produced six films, most of them directed by the tireless V. Shantaram. When India entered the era of talkies with Alam Ara in March 1931, Shantaram predicted that it was a transient phase, and the silent films were the real artistic area. But soon the company realized its mistake, and joined the talkie era with Ayodhyecha Raja (The King of Ayodhya) in Marathi (1932), also starring Durga Khote, which was the first film of Marathi Cinema, and later made under the name Ayodhya Ka Raja in Hindi. The film is based on Raja Harishchandra's story.[7] In 1930s when most of silent movies companies had closed down, Prabhat joined the ranks of "big three" of Indian cinema, which included New Theatres of Calcutta and Bombay Talkies of Mumbai [8]

In September 1933, the company moved to Pune because of its proximity to Mumbai and all the five founder moved with their families, and the doors of the studio finally opened in Pune in 1934. Then followed a golden era of 8–10 years during which the company made some landmark films: Sairandhri (1933), India's first colour film, processed and printed in Germany; Amrit Manthan (1934), Sant Tukaram (1936), Kunku (or Duniya Na Mane in Hindi) in 1937, Manoos (or Aadmi in Hindi) (1939), Shejari (or Padosi) in 1941. The biopic, title Sant Tukaram, in 1936, made by V. Damle and S. Fattelal of Prabhat Film Company and starring Vishnupant Pagnis as the lead, and released on 12 December 1936 at Central Cinema in Mumbai. The film was not only a big hit but also had won an award at the fifth Venice International Film Festival in 1937, and still remains a part of film appreciation courses.[9][10][11]

After Shantaram split away in 1942 to form his own "Rajkamal Kalamandir" studios, and Damle Mama fell ill, the company encountered hard times. People associated with the studio, such as G. Kamble a noted painter, were lured away by Shantaram.[12] Its last major film was Ram Shastri in 1944. Noted director, Guru Dutt started his career as a choreographer, under a three-year contract with the Prabhat Film Company in Pune in 1944. The company was closed in the early 1950s and property auctioned away in 1952. The company formally closed on 13 October 1953.

Major figures associated with Prabhat are composers Govindrao Tembe, Dinkar D. Patil, Keshavrao Bhole, Master Krishnarao, Vasant Desai; actresses Durga Khote, Shanta Apte, Shanta Hublikar, Vasanti, Jayashree Kamulkar; actors Bal Gandharva, Keshavrao Date, Shahu Modak. Other Marathi film companies of note in 1930s include Saraswati Movietone, Shalini Movietone, Hans Pictures. Major film directors : Bhalji (Bhal G) Pendharkar, Master Vinayak. Major music directors : Annasaheb Mainkar, Dhamman Khan, Dada Chandekar.

A number of notable Hindi film personalities were also associated with Prabhat Films, including Guru Dutt, Dev Anand and Rehman.

Legacy

  • The Pune premises of Prabhat Studios are today a declared heritage site.
  • The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) today occupies the Pune premises of Prabhat Studio in 1960. Students of FTII continue to use the studio premises.[13]
  • The road starting from Deccan Corner and ending at Law College Road in Pune is named 'Prabhat Road' because of the location of Prabhat Studios.

Later, Anantrao Damle, V G Damle's son, bought back the company's film prints from Mudaliyar of Chennai, who said he was happy to return to Maharashtra its treasures. Damle's sons have followed up his good work and brought out some of Prabhat's vintage films on VCDs, and songs from several Prabhat Films on audio CDs.[14] However, in January 2003, most of the original nitrates of the films, stored at the FTII cold-storage were destroyed in a fire while waiting to be transferred to National Film Archives storage.[15]

The 75th anniversary of Prabhat Films was celebrated in Pune, in June 2004. It included an exhibition of rare photographs and screening of the documentary film, It’s Prabhat!.[16][17]

Filmography

Silent Films

Talkies

References

  1. ^ a b The eternal dawn[dead link] Uma Karve, Indian Express, 28 May 2002.
  2. ^ [Usurped!] The Hindu, 2 May 2002.
  3. ^ 75 years on, this film company’s classics haven’t faded out[dead link] Express Features Service, Indian Express, 14 June 2003.
  4. ^ Prabhat Museum 2009-08-08 at the Wayback Machine Film and Television Institute of India.
  5. ^ Prabhat Films University of Chicago Library..
  6. ^ a b Backing Prabhat Films[permanent dead link] Indian Express, Thursday, 22 July 1999.
  7. ^ The Firsts of Indian Cinema: Milestones from 1896-2000 2011-07-19 at the Wayback Machine Film and Television Producers Guild of India
  8. ^ Prabhat Films Cinemas of the world: film and society from 1895 to the present, by James Chapman. Reaktion Books, 2003. ISBN 1-86189-162-8. p. 327.
  9. ^ 'Sant Tukaram' film still a topic of interest Anurag Basu - Televisionpoint.com, 26 December 2007.
  10. ^ Lost & found: A piece of classic cinema history[dead link] Indian Express, 26 March 2004.
  11. ^ Milestone 1937 Bollywood: a guidebook to popular Hindi cinema by Tejaswini Ganti. Routledge, 2004. ISBN 0-415-28853-3. page 208 .
  12. ^ Sethi, Sunil (12 July 2010). "Hoarding Secrets". Outlook India Magazine. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  13. ^ . FTII. FTII. Archived from the original on 4 March 2010. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  14. ^ 75 years on, this film company’s classics haven’t faded out[dead link] Express Features Service. Indian Express, 14 June 2003.
  15. ^ Prabhat Studio founder’s kin ask why such neglect 16 January 2003.
  16. ^ The age of innocence: From child artists waiting to be moulded to perfection by their directors to graceful veterans today, three actresses of Prabhat Film Company.. 2005-03-10 at the Wayback Machine Indian Express, 7 June 2004.
  17. ^ The Bugle Sounds again[dead link] Indian Express, 3 June 2004.
  • V. Shantaram, biography Upperstall.com

External links

March 30, 2023
prabhat, film, company, popularly, known, prabhat, films, indian, film, production, company, film, studios, founded, 1929, noted, film, director, shantaram, friends, prabhat, chitratypeprivateindustryindian, film, industryfounded1, june, 1929, years, 1929, fou. Prabhat Film Company popularly known as Prabhat Films was an Indian film production company and film studios founded in 1929 by the noted film director V Shantaram and his friends Prabhat ChitraTypePrivateIndustryIndian Film industryFounded1 June 1929 93 years ago 1929 06 01 FounderVishnupant Govind Damle V Shantaram S Fatelal Keshav Rao Dhaibar Seetaram Kulkarni 1 Defunct13 October 1953 69 years ago 1953 10 13 HeadquartersKolhapur Pune India 1933 onwards Key peopleV ShantaramServicesFilmsWebsitewww wbr prabhatfilm wbr comIt was formed in Kolhapur Maharashtra India in 1929 towards the end of silent films era by the noted film director V Shantaram along with V G Damle Keshav Rao Dhaibar S Fatelal and S V Kulkarni 2 The company moved to Pune in 1933 where it established its own studio and produced a total of 45 films in both Marathi and Hindi over 27 years including are Kunku Duniya Na Mane in Hindi Swarajyacha Toran also called Udaykal based on Shivaji s life Dharmatma on life of saint Eknath Sant Tukaram based on the saint poet and social reformer Shejari also called Padosi on communal harmony Manoos a k a Aadmi about alcoholism and Amar Jyoti about woman s emancipation While several companies such as Imperial Film Company Krishna Cinetone East India Film Company Madan Theatre Ranjit Wadia Movietone were very active during the advent of Talkie films in India Prabhat along with New Theatres of Kolkata stood out for their excellence and social awareness Today the Film and Television Institute of India Pune at Law College Road is situated in its former premises 1 3 and houses the Prabhat Museum which displays artefacts original contracts and partnership deeds of Prabhat Film Company along with costumes properties equipment posters and stills 4 The University of Chicago Library has a collection of 27 films produced by the Prabhat Film Company between 1932 and 1949 5 Contents 1 History 2 Legacy 3 Filmography 4 References 5 External linksHistory EditBaburao Painter s Maharashtra Film Company based in Kolhapur had made a name for itself with its silent films in early 1920s Close friends Vishnupant G Damle and Fateh Lal Damle Mama and Saheb Mama were very good artists and held posts with senior responsibility at the company 6 Baburao Pendharkar became the de facto head of operations because of Baburao Painter s distaste for financial matters Pendharkar s cousin Shantaram Vanakudre V Shantaram joined the company and became Baburao Painter s right hand man Ayodhyecha Raja 1932 the first Marathi film was made by Prabhat Films In 1927 1928 the senior personnel became dissatisfied by Baburao Painter s increasingly lukewarm and erratic behaviour Damle and Fateh Lal were thinking of starting their own company as were V Shantaram and Keshav Rao Dhaibar The four of them got together and with Sitaram Kulkarni well established jeweller in Kolhapur as their fifth partner and financier started a new company on 1 June 1929 with an initial investment amount of Rs 15 000 6 Baburao Pendharkar suggested the name Prabhat meaning Dawn and the other partners liked it Prabhat soon made a name for itself with silent films and produced six films most of them directed by the tireless V Shantaram When India entered the era of talkies with Alam Ara in March 1931 Shantaram predicted that it was a transient phase and the silent films were the real artistic area But soon the company realized its mistake and joined the talkie era with Ayodhyecha Raja The King of Ayodhya in Marathi 1932 also starring Durga Khote which was the first film of Marathi Cinema and later made under the name Ayodhya Ka Raja in Hindi The film is based on Raja Harishchandra s story 7 In 1930s when most of silent movies companies had closed down Prabhat joined the ranks of big three of Indian cinema which included New Theatres of Calcutta and Bombay Talkies of Mumbai 8 In September 1933 the company moved to Pune because of its proximity to Mumbai and all the five founder moved with their families and the doors of the studio finally opened in Pune in 1934 Then followed a golden era of 8 10 years during which the company made some landmark films Sairandhri 1933 India s first colour film processed and printed in Germany Amrit Manthan 1934 Sant Tukaram 1936 Kunku or Duniya Na Mane in Hindi in 1937 Manoos or Aadmi in Hindi 1939 Shejari or Padosi in 1941 The biopic title Sant Tukaram in 1936 made by V Damle and S Fattelal of Prabhat Film Company and starring Vishnupant Pagnis as the lead and released on 12 December 1936 at Central Cinema in Mumbai The film was not only a big hit but also had won an award at the fifth Venice International Film Festival in 1937 and still remains a part of film appreciation courses 9 10 11 After Shantaram split away in 1942 to form his own Rajkamal Kalamandir studios and Damle Mama fell ill the company encountered hard times People associated with the studio such as G Kamble a noted painter were lured away by Shantaram 12 Its last major film was Ram Shastri in 1944 Noted director Guru Dutt started his career as a choreographer under a three year contract with the Prabhat Film Company in Pune in 1944 The company was closed in the early 1950s and property auctioned away in 1952 The company formally closed on 13 October 1953 Major figures associated with Prabhat are composers Govindrao Tembe Dinkar D Patil Keshavrao Bhole Master Krishnarao Vasant Desai actresses Durga Khote Shanta Apte Shanta Hublikar Vasanti Jayashree Kamulkar actors Bal Gandharva Keshavrao Date Shahu Modak Other Marathi film companies of note in 1930s include Saraswati Movietone Shalini Movietone Hans Pictures Major film directors Bhalji Bhal G Pendharkar Master Vinayak Major music directors Annasaheb Mainkar Dhamman Khan Dada Chandekar A number of notable Hindi film personalities were also associated with Prabhat Films including Guru Dutt Dev Anand and Rehman Legacy EditThe Pune premises of Prabhat Studios are today a declared heritage site The Film and Television Institute of India FTII today occupies the Pune premises of Prabhat Studio in 1960 Students of FTII continue to use the studio premises 13 The road starting from Deccan Corner and ending at Law College Road in Pune is named Prabhat Road because of the location of Prabhat Studios Later Anantrao Damle V G Damle s son bought back the company s film prints from Mudaliyar of Chennai who said he was happy to return to Maharashtra its treasures Damle s sons have followed up his good work and brought out some of Prabhat s vintage films on VCDs and songs from several Prabhat Films on audio CDs 14 However in January 2003 most of the original nitrates of the films stored at the FTII cold storage were destroyed in a fire while waiting to be transferred to National Film Archives storage 15 The 75th anniversary of Prabhat Films was celebrated in Pune in June 2004 It included an exhibition of rare photographs and screening of the documentary film It s Prabhat 16 17 Filmography EditSilent Films Gopal Krishna 1929 Khooni Khanjar 1930 Rani Saheba 1930 Udaykal 1930 Chandrasena 1931 Zulum 1931 Talkies Ayodhyecha Raja 1932 Maya Machhindra 1932 Agnikankan Branded Oath 1932 Sinhagad 1933 Sairandhri 1933 Amrit Manthan 1934 Dharmatma 1935 Chandrasena 1935 Amar Jyoti 1936 Sant Tukaram 1936 Rajput Ramani 1936 Kunku 1937 Duniya Na Mane 1937 Mera Ladka 1938 Gopal Krishna 1938 Manoos 1939 Aadmi 1939 Sant Dnyaneshwar 1940 Beyond the Horizon Padosi 1941 Das Baje 1942 also called 10 O Clock Ramshastri 1944 Chand 1944 Aparadhi 1949 Hum Ek Hain 1946 film Debut film of Dev Anand Aage Badho 1946 starring Dev Anand References Edit a b The eternal dawn dead link Uma Karve Indian Express 28 May 2002 A navrang of Shantaram s films Retrospective Usurped The Hindu 2 May 2002 75 years on this film company s classics haven t faded out dead link Express Features Service Indian Express 14 June 2003 Prabhat Museum Archived 2009 08 08 at the Wayback Machine Film and Television Institute of India Prabhat Films University of Chicago Library a b Backing Prabhat Films permanent dead link Indian Express Thursday 22 July 1999 The Firsts of Indian Cinema Milestones from 1896 2000 Archived 2011 07 19 at the Wayback Machine Film and Television Producers Guild of India Prabhat Films Cinemas of the world film and society from 1895 to the present by James Chapman Reaktion Books 2003 ISBN 1 86189 162 8 p 327 Sant Tukaram film still a topic of interest Anurag Basu Televisionpoint com 26 December 2007 Lost amp found A piece of classic cinema history dead link Indian Express 26 March 2004 Milestone 1937 Bollywood a guidebook to popular Hindi cinema by Tejaswini Ganti Routledge 2004 ISBN 0 415 28853 3 page 208 Sethi Sunil 12 July 2010 Hoarding Secrets Outlook India Magazine Retrieved 23 July 2020 A brief history of FTII FTII FTII Archived from the original on 4 March 2010 Retrieved 7 July 2015 75 years on this film company s classics haven t faded out dead link Express Features Service Indian Express 14 June 2003 Prabhat Studio founder s kin ask why such neglect 16 January 2003 The age of innocence From child artists waiting to be moulded to perfection by their directors to graceful veterans today three actresses of Prabhat Film Company Archived 2005 03 10 at the Wayback Machine Indian Express 7 June 2004 The Bugle Sounds again dead link Indian Express 3 June 2004 V Shantaram biography Upperstall comExternal links EditOfficial website Prabhat Films at Internet Movie Database Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Prabhat Film Company amp oldid 1145139105, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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