March 12th, 2011

Nalini Tarkhud – Profile

[Back to Nalini Tarkhud's Menu]

The pioneers of the Indian films faced the problem of finding actresses who were beautiful and photogenic, as well as accomplished in singing and dancing. Women those days didn’t want to act on screen. Dada Saheb Phalke planning his first film finally managed to per­suade a prostitute to play the female role. But after a few days, her pimp took her away for a more lucrative job. As an alternative Phalke had to choose a male actor, Salunke, to play Taramati in “Raja Harish­chandra” (1913), the first Indian feature film.

The attendant publicity ac­corded to the film’s stars prompted women to join the films. But acting as a profession whether on stage or screen, was out of bounds for any respectable woman.

The first highly educated woman who joined films was Enakshi Rama Rau, M.A., who shot into fame with the release of Himansu Rai’s “Shiraz”. She was followed by Nalini Tarkhud, an educated and beauti­ful woman.

She came from a distinguish­ed Maratha family. Her grand­father, Dr. Atmaram Pandurang Tarkhud was a great social re­former and the first Hindu sheriff of Bombay.

Nalini Tarkhud grew up a deeply religious girl. She had a sensitive and imaginative mind and her latent talent found ex­pression under the celebrated film producer-director Mohan Bhavnani who discovered her. Nalini Tarkhud was selected to play the second lead in “Vasant­sena” (1931) based on the clas­sical Sanskrit drama “Mrichha­katika” (The Toy Cart). The title role was played by Enakshi Rama Rau. Nalini in the role of Madanika, the companion and friend of Vasantsena, looked charming. “Vasantsena” was a silent movie shot in Bangalore. The settings were mostly out­doors. The trend of outdoor shooting was set by Mohan Bhavnani in the 1930′s much be­fore the French and the Italian producers.

Besides, Enakshi Rama Rau, her co-stars in the film were Kamaladevi Chattopadhyaya and Kumar Chattopadhyaya, Shakun­tala and J. K. Nanda. Nanda who later directed many films was impressed by the elegant Nalini. When he directed his first film “Pavitra Ganga” pro­duced by Oriental Pictures, Lahore, he offered the leading role to Nalini who consented im­mediately. It was a talkie and her co-stars were Inder, Nam­biar and Hiralal.

Her family background and education aroused the curiosity and interest of the public in her films. But the reaction of ortho­dox families was not encouraging. She had to face opposition and criticism. The press published her photographs and details of her family background. She joined films for the sheer joy of giving expression to her talent and as an outlet for her artistic instincts.

Slender to a fault, tall for her age, fair complexioned with a satin-like skin, Nalini had a classical beauty. She had a deli­cately poised head with spark­ling dark eyes, arched eyebrows, expressively sensuous lips and a bearing which was commanding.

Nalini Tarkhud joined Prabhat Film Co., Poona. Shantaram who was known for encouraging newcomers found in Nalini qualities that needed encourage­ment. Here was a frail, timid girl who needed training and opportunity, to come to promi­nence. He gave her the leading role in “Amrit Manthan” (1934) opposite Suresh Babu. But Chandra Mohan dominated the film with his impressive eyes, flawless acting and powerful voice. Hers was the sympathetic role of a shy wife.

Later, Shantaram signed her for another movie “Chandra­sena” (1935), again opposite Suresh Babu. This time her per­formance received recognition from the public and the press. But her best acting was “Rajput Ramani” (1936) directed by Dhaiber. Except for “Rajput Ramani,” her roles were not he­roine-oriented and provided very little opportunity to prove her acting ability.

Nalini Tarkhud possessed a beautiful voice and sang the “Meera” songs with rapturous devotion. She herself composed lyrics in Marathi. Her sketches and drawings displayed in her drawing room were simple and interesting. She was proud of being a Maratha and an admi­ration for Shivaji, an intense love and reverence for the saints and sages of India, marked her mental outlook.

Although the span of her film career was very short, it was everlasting in the sense that she paved the way for the entry of girls from good families into films – Ahmed Sultan

Actors & Actresses