Origins & Early Life

Devika Rani Chaudhuri (Bengali pronunciation: [debika raɳi]; 30 March 1908 – 9 March 1994), known professionally as Devika Rani, was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi cinema. Widely acknowledged as the First Lady of Indian cinema, Devika Rani is regarded as one of the greatest actresses. She was the first recipient of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award and was awarded the Padma Shri. One of the highest-paid actress of the 1930s and early 1940s, she appeared in Box Office India's "Top Actresses" list in 1940 and 1941.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Born into a wealthy, anglicized Indian family, Devika Rani was sent to boarding school in England at age nine and grew up in that country. In 1928, she met Himanshu Rai, an Indian film-producer, and married him the following year. She assisted in costume design and art direction for Rai's experimental silent film A Throw of Dice (1929). Both of them then went to Germany and received training in film-making at UFA Studios in Berlin. Rai then cast himself as hero and her as heroine in his next production, the bilingual film Karma, made simultaneously in English and Hindi.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

The film premiered in England in 1933, elicited interest there for a prolonged kissing scene featuring...

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