Who were the Indian Stars of the Silent Film Era?

The Indian silent film era is filled with enigmatic stars and celebrities.

They possessed the unique ability to entertain and enthral the audience without uttering a single word.

The silent era – which spanned from 1912 to 1934 – includes many talented and charismatic people.

Their names are steeped within Indian film history.

Paying tribute to them, DESIblitz invites you on a cinematic odyssey that will introduce you to several such stars.

We explore some of the Indian stars of the silent film era.

Fatma Begum

Regarded as the first female director of Indian cinema, Fatma Begum was a pioneer of the silent film era.

In 1922, she made her film debut with Veer Abhimanyu.

She went on to establish her own production company Victoria-Fatma Films in 1926.

Using this company, Fatima directed Bulbul-e-Paristan (1926).

She also helmed Goddess of Luck (1929).

Her younger daughter Zubeida also dabbled in silent film, before starring in India’s first talkie Alam Ara (1931).

Fatma passed away in 1983, leaving behind an inspiring legacy that carved the way for many creatives.

Sonam Kapoor Ahuja remembers the filmmaker, stating: “Another inspiration of mine has to be Fatma Begum!

“She was a leader in so many ways.

“Largely responsible for pulling the film industry out of its patriarchal ways, she was also unafraid to try new things and experiment.”

Patience Cooper

Beginning her career as a dancer, Patience Cooper’s first foray into films was with Nala Damayanti (1920).

One of her biggest successes was Pati Bhakti (1922), where she appeared as Leelavati.

In Pati Pratap (1923), Patience portrayed two sisters.

This act is regarded as the first time an Indian actor starred in multiple roles onscreen.

She repeated this feat when she played a mother and daughter in Kashmiri Sundari (1924).

In her later life, Patience changed her name to Sabra Begum.

Patience Cooper will be remembered for her talent as well as her boldness in playing sexually troubled, innocent women.

Gul Hamid

Although he played leading roles in talkies, Gul Hamid began his film career in silent movies.

He debuted with Safdar Jung (1930) and went on to star in hits including Sarfarosh (1930) and Khooni Katar (1931).

Gul Hamid starred in the first Punjabi talkie Heer Ranjha (1932).

Screenwriter Muhammad Ibrahim Zia delves into how Gul Hamid landed Safdar Jung:

“It was his overall persona that made AR Kardar offer him Safdar Jung.“

“Gul had an extraordinary personality and a charming face, which have been signature traits of actors from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”

However, Zia adds that Gul Hamid’s accent prevented him from progressing as a performer:

“Hamid could not adapt to changing trends in cinema because of his Pashto accent, a weakness that prohibits even today’s Pakhtun actors from taking up mainstream acting careers.”

Gul Hamid was also the second husband of Patience Cooper.

Khalil

Born Khalil Ahmed, this superstar’s first film appearance is in Krishna Sudama (1920).

It is co-produced by the pioneering studio of the Indian silent film era Kohinoor Studios.

He also starred in hits including Sati Parvati (1920), Malti Madhav (1922), and Manorama (1924).

Khalil was noted for his belief that “art is above any community”.

Such mature thoughts were ahead of his time and this reflected in his enigmatic performances.

At the age of 37, Khalil passed away on October 28, 1941. He was married and allegedly had five children.

Raja Sandow

This actor began his career as a stuntman and due to his physique, he was given the screen name of Raja Sandow (after Eugen Sandow).

Sandow’s first lead role was in Bhakta Bodana (1922).

He went on to feature in films including Veer Bhemsen (1923) and The Telephone Girl (1926).

In 1928, he made his directorial debut with Sneh Jyoti.

Several of the silent films starring Sandrow have social themes.

After talkies were introduced, Sandow made his mark in sound cinema, but one cannot deny his immense contribution to the silent film era.

Film historian Theodore Baskaran enthuses: “As a director, actor, scriptwriter and producer, his contribution to Tamil cinema is significant.

“He was a martinet on the sets and was often compared to a ringmaster in a circus.”

Ruby Myers (Sucholana)

With the screen name Sucholana, Ruby Myers dazzled whenever she was up there in front of the audience.

Ruby became a star under the mentorship of Kohinoor Film Company.

Her popular films include Typist Girl (1926), Balidaan (1927), and Wildcat of Bombay (1927).

When sound films came in, Ruby experienced a downfall in her career.

She therefore took a year’s hiatus to learn Indian languages before making a comeback.

In 1973, Ruby was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for her contribution to Indian cinema.

Sultana

One of the daughters of the aforementioned Fatma Begum, Sultana entered the film industry at a young age.

This was also when films were considered an improper profession for girls and women.

Interestingly, Sultana entered the industry with the same film as her mother’s debut, Veer Abhimanyu (1922).

Influential movies including Gul Bakavali (1924) and Prithvi Vallabh (1924) followed.

The latter carries the unique distinction of featuring Sultana with her sister Zubeida and her mother Fatma.

Sultana was the wife of Seth Razzaq and their daughter Jamila Razzaq was a popular Pakistani actress in the ’50s and ’60s.

Jamila’s husband was the Pakistani cricketer Waqar Hasan.

Bhaurao Datar