Sumitra Devi

Sumitra Devi Biography

Sumitra Devi was a well-known Indian actress of early talkies, who worked in Bollywood and Bengali movies. She was active during 1940s-1960s, and worked in both these language films during the time period. She was one of the leading female stars of the classic era, known for her beauty as well as talent and a recipient of numerous honours including BFJA Award for Best Actress in 1945. Her famous Bollywood roles include - Jagte Raho, Mamta, Oonch Neech, Bhai Dooj etc. Her famous Bengali roles are cult classic Saheb Bibi Golam, Swami, Dasyu Mohan, Kinu Gowalar Gali etc.

Sumitra Devi was born on 22 July 1923 at Shiuri, Birbhum, West Bengal. Her real name is Nilima Chattopadhyay. She belonged to a rich Brahmin family of Bengal. Inspired by the actress Kanan Devi, she also determined to become an actress. Hindi film - Meri Bahen (1944) marked her screen debut and very soon she signed Bengali film, Sandhi. Sandhi got released earlier, and thus credited to her debut film. From there on she gave equal preference to Hindi and Bengali films, and played every kind of roles on screen.

She married actor Debi Mukherjee in 1946 and gave birth to a son the following year. 10 days after the birth of her son, her husband passed away on 11 December 1947. She continued with her film journey after that. During her ruling days in Indian cinema, it was said that she used to seduce her co-actors, directors, producers and journalists. Her beauty has been praised by her contemporary actors. She was paired with Uttam Kumar in many Bengali hits of classic era. She passed away in 1990 aged 67.

Published: August 24, 2019

Updated: August 24, 2019