Remembering Raja Paranjpe, the legendary actor, director, producer, and writer in Marathi cinema, on his 114th birth anniversary (24/04/1910).

Remembering Raja Paranjpe, the legendary actor, director, producer, and writer in Marathi cinema, on his 114th birth anniversary (24/04/1910).

Raja Paranjpe was quite a legend in Marathi stage and cinema as a writer, producer, director, and actor, but he did very few Hindi films. Ruling Marathi cinema from 1948 to 1969, he acted in 60 films and directed 27 films, including 13 Hindi films as an actor. His notable Hindi films as an actor include ‘Chacha Chowdhury’ (1953), ‘Bandini’ (1963), ‘Jal Bin Machhli Nritya Bin Bijli’ (1971), ‘Piya Ka Ghar’ (1972), and ‘Us-Paar’ (1974). The Hindi films directed by Raja Paranjpe include ‘Baap Bete’ (1959) and ‘Love and Murder’ (1966). The super hit Hindi film ‘Mera Saaya’ (1964) was a remake of his 1964 Marathi film ‘Pathlaag.’

Raja Paranjpe’s genius lay in his ability to bring a smile to the audience’s face without any slapstick comedy and to bring them to tears without adding any glycerine to his own eyes.

In the second photo, Raja Paranjpe and Nutan appear in a still from the movie ‘Bandini’ (1963).