Ravindra Dave (16 April 1919 – 21 July 1992) was an Indian film director, producer, editor and screenwriter. He directed more than 30 Hindi films in the 1950s and 1960s including several hits like ''Nagina'' (1951), '' Agra Road'' (1957), ''Post Box 999'' (1958), ''Satta Bazaar'' (1959), ''Dulha Dulhan'' (1964) and '' Raaz'' (1967). He turned to

Gujarati cinema Gujarati cinema, also known as Gollywood or Dhollywood, is the Gujarati language film industry. It is one of the major regional and vernacular film industries of the cinema of India, having produced more than one thousand films since its ince ...

with his blockbuster ''Jesal Toral'' (1971) and directed more than 25 Gujarati films in the 1970s and 1980s.

Early life

Ravindra Dave was born on 16 April 1919 in Karachi, British India (modern day Pakistan) in a Brahmin family. His family belonged to Halvad (modern day Gujarat, India). At the age of 14, he joined his uncle

Dalsukh M. Pancholi Dalsukh M. Pancholi (1906–1959) was an Indian film-maker, producer and distributor who is remembered for making the first Punjabi film. Considered to be a film pioneer, Pancholi's Empire Talkie Distributors based in Lahore were the biggest impo ...

in Lahore as a production manager for his Punjabi films. He learned editing from producer and director Shaukat Hussain Rizvi.

Career

Hindi cinema

Dave directed two songs for ''Shiri-Farhad'' in 1942, which was left incomplete by director Prahalad Dutt. His direction of songs impressed his uncle Dalsukh Pancholi who entrusted him with the job. In 1943, he co-directed ''

Poonji ''Poonji'' is a Bollywood film. It was released in 1943. The film was directed by Ravindra Dave and Vishnu R. Pancholi. It starred M. Esmail, Durga Mota, Ragini in lead roles. Plot The film revolves around three sisters trying to prevent th ...

'' with Vishnu R. Pancholi. The film revolves around three sisters trying to prevent their father from remarrying. His next noir film, ''Dhamki,'' was a suspense thriller. After the

partition of India The Partition of British India in 1947 was the Partition (politics), change of political borders and the division of other assets that accompanied the dissolution of the British Raj in South Asia and the creation of two independent dominions: ...

, he left Lahore and moved to Bombay (now Mumbai), India. He directed social dramas, comedies, mythological as well as patriotic films. He directed several murder mysteries and suspense thrillers. ''Sawan Bhado'' was his first film after moving to Bombay. In 1951, he directed ''Nagina'' starring Nutan and Nasir Khan. The film introduced playback singer

C. H. Atma C.H. Atma was a Bollywood playback singer, ghazal singer and film actor. He was born in 1923 in Hyderabad (Sind), now in Pakistan. His real name was Atma Hashmatrai Chainani. He was the first singer from India to tour and sing outside India in N ...

and the music was composed by

Shankar Jaikishan Shankar may refer to: People *Shankar (name), including a list of people with the name * Sankar (writer) (Mani Shankar Mukherjee), Bengali writer * L. Shankar, Indian violinist * S. Shankar, Indian film director commonly credited as Shankar *Sanka ...

. Following its success, Dave named his production company Nagina Films. He produced ''Satta Bazaar'', starring

Balraj Sahni Brigadier Balraj (born Balasegaram Kandiah) was a senior commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Early life Balraj was the fifth and youngest child of Kandiah and Kannagias. He received his primary education in Kokkuthoduwaai ...

and

Meena Kumari Meena Kumari (born Mahjabeen Bano; 1 August 1933 – 31 March 1972) was an Indian actress and poet, who worked in Hindi films. Popularly known as ''The Tragedy Queen'', she was active between 1939 and 1972. Kumari is widely considered one of ...

, and ''

Dulha Dulhan ''Dulha Dulhan'' is a 1964 Indian Bollywood film produced and directed by Ravindra Dave. It stars Raj Kapoor and Sadhana Shivdasani Sadhana Shivdasani (2 September 1941 – 25 December 2015), known mononymously as Sadhana, was an Indian p ...

'', starring

Raj Kapoor Raj Kapoor (pronunciation: �aːd͡ʒ kəpuːɾ born Shrishti Nath Kapoor; also known as Ranbir Raj Kapoor; 14 December 1924 2 June 1988) was an Indian actor, film director and producer, who worked in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of ...

and Sadhana under the banner of Nagina Films. ''Naina'' starred

Geeta Bali Geeta Bali (born Harkirtan Kaur; 1930 ‒ 21 January 1965) was an Indian actress who appeared in Hindi language films. She was the wife of noted film actor Shammi Kapoor. Early life Geeta Bali was born as Harikirtan Kaur in Amritsar in the P ...

and

Abhi Bhattacharya Abhi Bhattacharya (20 November 1921 – 11 August 1993) was an Indian actor of Hindi and Bengali cinema, who is most remembered for his roles in films of the 1950s and the 1960s, such as '' Yatrik'' (1952), '' Jagriti'' (1954), ''Anuradha'' ( ...

. His films ''Moti Mahal'' and ''Char Minar'' were thrillers. Actor Vijay Anand debuted with his film '' Agra Road''. ''Post Box 999'', starring

Sunil Dutt Sunil Dutt (born Balraj Dutt; 6 June 1929 — 25 May 2005) was an Indian actor, film producer, director and politician. Dutt was one of the major stars of Hindi cinema in the late 1950s and 1960s and continued to star in many successful film ...

and

Shakila Shakila Mohseni Sedaghat ( fa, شکیلا محسنی صداقت, Šakīlā Moḥsenī Sadāqat), known mononymously as Shakila ( fa, شکیلا, Šakīlā; born May 3, 1962), is an Iranian singer-songwriter based in San Diego, California. She is ...

, was inspired by the Hollywood film ''

Call Northside 777 ''Call Northside 777'' is a 1948 reality-based newspaper drama directed by Henry Hathaway. The film parallels the true story of a Chicago reporter who proved that a man jailed for murder was wrongly convicted 11 years before. James Stewart star ...

''. '' Raaz'' starred

Rajesh Khanna Rajesh Khanna () (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. He is called as the "First Superstar of Hindi cinema", he consecutively starred in a recor ...

and

Babita Babita Shivdasani-Kapoor (born 20 April 1947), also known simply as Babita or Babita Kapoor, is a former Indian actress who appeared in Hindi-language films. The daughter of actor Hari Shivdasani, she is the first cousin of her contemporary ac ...

. His last Hindi film was ''Road to Sikkim'' starring

Anju Mahendru Anju Mahendru is an Indian actress. She is best known as Reeva in '' Kahiin to Hoga'', Kamini Gupta in ''Kasautii Zindagii Kay'' and Beeji in '' Ek Hazaaron Mein Meri Behna Hai''. Personal life Mahendru was briefly engaged to cricket player G ...

and Dev Kumar. He worked with some of the leading composers of the time, including: Ghulam Haider,

Husnlal Bhagatram Husn Lal and Bhagat Ram were the first legendary music directors duo in Bollywood. They are two brothers, Husn Lal (8 April 1920 – 28 December 1968) and Bhagat Ram (1914 – 29 November 1973). Husn Lal was also a renowned violinist, vocalist ...

, Vijaysinghraje Patwardhan,

C. Ramchandra Ramchandra Narhar Chitalkar (12 January 1918 – 5 January 1982), also known as C. Ramchandra or Chitalkar or Anna Sahib, was an Indian music director and playback singer.

Chitragupta Chitragupta (Sanskrit: चित्रगुप्त, 'rich in secrets' or 'hidden picture') is a Hindu deity assigned with the task of keeping complete records of the actions of human beings and punishing or rewarding them according to their ...

O. P. Nayyar Omkar Prasad Nayyar (16 January 1926 – 28 January 2007) was an Indian film music composer, singer-songwriter, music producer, and musician. He is considered to be one of the most rhythmic and melodious music directors of the Hindi film indust ...

Manna Dey Prabodh Chandra Dey (May 1, 1919 − October 24, 2013), known by his stage name Manna Dey, was an internationally acclaimed and celebrated Indian playback singer, music director, and a musician. As a classical vocalist, he belonged to the Bhe ...

, S. D. Burman, Roshan, Kalyanji-Anandji and

Ravi Ravi may refer to: People * Ravi (name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Ravi (composer) (1926–2012), Indian music director * Ravi (Ivar Johansen) (born 1976), Norwegian musical artist * Ravi (music director) (1926� ...

Gujarati cinema

Dave had planned to remake his blockbuster ''Nagina'' with

Leena Chandavarkar Leena Chandavarkar (born 29 August 1950) is an Indian former actress who appeared in Bollywood movies as a leading actress and now appears in reality shows. She was an actress during the late 60s and early 70s. She played leading heroine opposit ...

and

Sanjay Khan Sanjay Khan (born Shah Abbas Ali Khan Tanoli, 3 January 1941) is an Indian actor, producer, and director known for his works in Hindi films and television. Sanjay Khan made his debut in Chetan Anand (director), Chetan Anand's 1964 film ''Haqeeq ...

, but the project was delayed. As a result, he turned his production crew to

to keep them employed. He directed ''Jesal Toral'' based on the local legend of Gujarat launching the careers of

Upendra Trivedi Upendra Jethalal Trivedi (14 July 1936 4 January 2015) was an Indian film and stage actor, director and producer who was one of the most prolific actors of Gujarati cinema. As an actor films like '' Mehndi Rang Lagyo'' (1960), ''Jogidas Khuman ...

and

Ramesh Mehta Rameshwar Nath "Ramesh" Mehta, (born 7 August 1923) is an Indian playwright, director, actor and translator. Biography Mehta moved to Delhi in 1942 in search of a job after his graduation. His farce ''Under Secretary'' has been translated in ...

. The film proved to be one of the biggest hits of Gujarati cinema and ran for 25 weeks in theatres. It won 17 awards from the

Government of Gujarat The Government of Gujarat, also known as Gujarat Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Gujarat and its 33 districts. It consists of an executive of the legislators appointed by the Governor of Gujarat, a judiciar ...

. The film is considered to have revived the Gujarati cinema. His other blockbuster Gujarati films include: ''Raja Bharathari'', ''Hothal Padmani'', ''Kunwarbai nu Mameru'', ''Shetal Ne Kanthe'', ''Malavpati Munj'', ''Bhadar Tara Vehta Pani'', ''Son Kansari,'' and ''Patali Parmar''. His last Gujarati film was ''Malo Nagde'' starring Upendra Trivedi,

Aruna Irani Aruna Irani (born 3 May 1946) is an Indian actress, who has acted in over 500 films throughout Hindi, Kannada, Marathi and Gujarati cinema, playing mostly supporting and character roles. She has won two Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting ...

and

Mulraj Rajda Mulraj Rajda (13 November 1931 – 23 September 2012) was an Indian writer, actor and director who predominantly worked in Hindi and Gujarati films, television shows and theatre. He is regarded as one of the most finest artist in the Gujarat ...

. He directed 26 Gujarati films in total. Upendra Trivedi starred in 16 of them and he collaborated with music composer

Avinash Vyas Avinash Vyas was an Indian music composer, lyricist and singer of Gujarati films who composed music for over 190 Gujarati films. He was a winner of Gujarat State Film award for the best lyricist and best music 25 times. He was honoured by the ...

on 20 of them.

Last years

In the 1980s, he undertook a crime thriller titled ''Mera Pati Mera Qatil'' with the hope of returning to Hindi films, but the film never went into production due to his ill health and financial constraints. Years later,

Rakesh Roshan Rakesh Roshan (born 6 September 1949) is an Indian film producer, director, screenwriter, and actor who works in Hindi films. He is the son of Indian music director Roshan and Indian Bengali singer Ira Roshan. He had appeared in 84 films thr ...

produced ''

Khoon Bhari Maang ''Khoon Bhari Maang'' () is a 1988 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed and produced by Rakesh Roshan. Based on the Australian mini-series '' Return to Eden'' (1983), it stars Rekha as a wealthy widow who is almost killed by her se ...

'' with a similar plot which was declared a hit. Ravindra Dave died on 21 July 1992 in Mumbai.

Legacy

Film historian Subhash Chheda said, "Dave brought the diminishing

Gujarati culture The culture of Gujarat is both ancient, new, and modern. Gujarati engagement ceremony ''In many Gujarati communities, the engagement ceremony is known as 'Gol Dhana', which does not include a ring ceremony''. (in Gujarati script, ગોળ-� ...

in front of the people. The films were mostly produced for an urban audience then. He made films for a rural audience which were also well received by the urban audience. His biggest contribution

o Gujarati cinema O, or o, is the fifteenth letter and the fourth vowel letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''o'' (pronounced ), plu ...

is bringing a new audience to Gujarati films." Due to his expertise in thriller and mystery films, Chheda called him India's

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

Personal life

Dave was married to Jashumatiben. He enjoyed driving and owned several vintage cars. He was an amateur painter, carpenter, and sculptor. Dave was fondly known as Ravinbhai in the Hindi film industry and Bapa in the Gujarati film industry.

Filmography

He directed, produced or wrote the following films:

Director

Hindi films

Gujarati films

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dave, Ravindra Gujarati-language film directors Film directors from Gujarat 1919 births 1992 deaths Hindi-language film directors 20th-century Indian film directors Indian silent film directors People from Karachi People from Mumbai