Sardar Akhtar (1915–1986) was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi and Urdu films. She started her acting career on the

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

stage. Her early films were with Saroj Movietone, where she did a majority of stunt (action) roles. She came into prominence as the washer-woman in the role of Rami Dhoban in

Sohrab Modi Sohrab Merwanji Modi (2 November 1897 – 28 January 1984) was an Indian stage and film actor, director and producer. His films include '' Khoon Ka Khoon'' (1935), a version of Shakespeare's ''Hamlet'', '' Sikandar'', ''Pukar'', ''Prithvi V ...

's '' Pukar'' (1939). As a woman seeking justice for the death of her husband, it was a breakthrough role for her. A popular song she sang in the film was "Kaheko Mohe Chhede". Her career defining role was as a "peasant woman" deserted by her husband, in

Mehboob Khan Mehboob Khan (born Mehboob Khan Ramzan Khan; 9 September 1907
at filmreference.com. – 28 ...

's '' Aurat'' (1940), a role later made famous by

Nargis Nargis Dutt (born Fatima Rashid; 1 June 1929 – 3 May 1981) was an Indian actress and politician who worked in Hindi cinema. Regarded as one of the greatest actresses in the history of Indian cinema, she made her screen debut in a minor role ...

in Mehboob's remake ''

Mother India ''Mother India'' is a 1957 Indian epic drama film, directed by Mehboob Khan and starring Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar and Raaj Kumar. A remake of Khan's earlier film '' Aurat'' (1940), it is the story of a poverty-stricken village wo ...

''. She acted in over 50 films in a career span of 1933–45. Akhtar married Mehboob Khan in 1942, whom she had met when he cast her in ''

Ali Baba "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" ( ar, علي بابا والأربعون لصا) is a folk tale from the ''One Thousand and One Nights''. It was added to the collection in the 18th century by its French translator Antoine Galland, who heard ...

'' (1940). She stopped after completing films like ''Fashion'' (1943) and ''Rahat''. She resumed as a character actress in the 1970s when she acted in O. P. Ralhan's '' Hulchul'' (1971).

Early life

Akhtar was born in 1915, in

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. She started as a supporting "dancer-artiste" and commenced her film career by acting in stage plays produced by Madan Theatres Ltd.

Career

Akhtar started her career at Saroj Movietone doing what were then termed as "stunt" films. She acted in films directed by A. P. Kapoor (Anand Prasad Kapoor) like ''Roop Basant'', ''Id Ka Chand'', ''Malti Madhav'', all in 1933. Some of the action films she did at Saroj were directed by J. P. Advani (Jagatrai Pesumal Advani), including ''Gafil Musafir'', ''Johare-Shamsheer'', ''Shah Behram'' and ''Tilasimi Talwar''. In 1934 she acted in ''Hothal Padmini'' directed by Kanjibhai Rathod. In 1935, Akhtar acted in ''Delhi Express'', directed by Madanrai Vakil. In 1936, she starred with K. L. Saigal in the farcical-comedy ''

Karodpati ''Karodpati'' (also called ''Millionaire'') is a Hindi 1936 comedy film directed by Hemchander Chunder. The film was produced by New Theatres Ltd. Calcutta, and the music was composed by R. C. Boral with the assistance of Pankaj Mullick. The ly ...

''. The comedy was a rare departure from Saigal's normally serious films. Akhtar played a masked avenger in

Vijay Bhatt Vijay Bhatt (born Vrajlal Jagneshwar Bhatt; 12 May 1907 – 17 October 1993) was a producer-director-screenwriter of Hindi cinema, who made such films as '' Ram Rajya'' (1943), '' Baiju Bawra'' (1952), '' Goonj Uthi Shehnai'' (1959) and '' Him ...

-directed '' State Express'' (1938). It was stated to be a "successful film," doing well at the box office. The main draw was a "performing gorilla" and Sardar Akhtar's songs and performance. It was cited by Rajadhyaksha and Willemen as one of the "best stunt films" from Bhatt, who normally made mythologicals.RajadhyakshaWillemen2014, p. 279 In 1939, Sardar Akhtar was cast because of her natural earthy looks in Sohrab Modi's ''Pukar'' as the washer-woman Rami Dhoban. Her husband has been accidentally killed by an arrow shot by Empress Nur Jahan. Rami demands justice of Emperor Jehangir, evoking his tenet "A life for a life". Akhtar's role was appreciated by the public and the critics; it was a turning point in her career — from doing stunt roles to big production socials. 1940 had Akhtar working in ''

''. The film was directed by Mehboob Khan, someone Akhtar had been trying to meet for some time. It co-starred Surendra and Waheedan Bai and turned out to be a commercial success. A relationship started between Mehboob and Akhtar during the making of ''Ali Baba'', with the two marrying in 1942. '' Aurat'' (1940), directed by Mehboob Khan for National Studios, is referred to as "one of the best classics of Hindi cinema". Described as a "powerful predecessor of Mother India", The role displayed Akhtar's acting potential fully and her "interpretation of the mother figure" was lauded. Akhtar described it as her favourite film performance. '' Pooja'' in 1940 was termed as a "thundering success" by

Baburao Patel Baburao Patel (1904–1982) was an Indian publisher and writer, associated with films and politics. Career He was the editor and publisher of India's first film trade magazine, '' Filmindia'', the first edition of which was published in 1935. ...

in his review. Produced by National studios and directed by A. R. Kardar, the review title described it as "Kardar Produces The Best Picture Of The Year". The story, inspired by '' The Old Maid'' (1939) by Warner Pictures, was about sisters played by Akhtar and

Sitara Devi Sitara Devi (named Dhanlakshm; 8 November 1920 – 25 November 2014) was an Indian dancer of the classical Kathak style of dancing, a singer, and an actress. She was the recipient of several awards and accolades, and performed at several prest ...

. Akhtar was commended for performing her role with sincerity.

Personal life

Sardar Akhtar was the older sister of Bahar Akhtar, also an aspiring actress. During their debut together opposite

A. R. Kardar Abdur Rashid Kardar (1904–1989) was an Indian film actor, director and producer. He is credited with establishing the film industry in the Bhati Gate locality of Lahore, British India (now in Pakistan). Though Akhtar stopped working after 1945, she was, as stated by Mehboob, his inspiration for making films like ''

Aan ''Aan'' (Hindi: आन, Urdu: آن, translation: ''Pride''), released as ''The Savage Princess'' in the United Kingdom and United States, is a 1952 Indian Bollywood adventure film, produced and directed by Mehboob Khan. It was India's first t ...

'' (1952), ''Andaz'', and the remake of ''Aurat'': ''

'' (1957). Fond of watching films, her favourite actors were

Bette Davis Ruth Elizabeth "Bette" Davis (; April 5, 1908 – October 6, 1989) was an American actress with a career spanning more than 50 years and 100 acting credits. She was noted for playing unsympathetic, sardonic characters, and was famous for her p ...

Norma Shearer Edith Norma Shearer (August 11, 1902June 12, 1983) was a Canadian-American actress who was active on film from 1919 through 1942. Shearer often played spunky, sexually liberated ingénues. She appeared in adaptations of Noël Coward, Eugene O' ...

Vivien Leigh Vivien Leigh ( ; 5 November 1913 – 8 July 1967; born Vivian Mary Hartley), styled as Lady Olivier after 1947, was a British actress. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress twice, for her definitive performances as Scarlett O'Hara in ''Gon ...

, and

Charles Boyer Charles Boyer (; 28 August 1899 – 26 August 1978) was a French-American actor who appeared in more than 80 films between 1920 and 1976. After receiving an education in drama, Boyer started on the stage, but he found his success in American fi ...

Death

Sardar Akhtar died on 2 October 1986, following a heart attack in New York City, US. Mehboob and Akhtar had no children. After Mehboob's death in 1964, she became his legal heir with shares in Mehboob Studios and three flats. The property went into litigation once Akhtar's nephew made forgery claims regarding Akhtar's will. The two-decade old dispute is still pending.

Filmography

List:

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Akhtar, Sardar 1915 births 1984 deaths Actresses in Hindi cinema Actresses in Urdu cinema 20th-century Indian actresses People from Lahore Indian film actresses