The Ladies That Did Direction when Pre-Partition Bollywood was not so Advance

Her career started as an Urdu stage actress which led her to be cast in Veer Abhimanyu in 1922. She founded Fatma Films in 1928 and made attempts at utilising special effects to achieve more surreal images in films.

She is known as the first recorded female director in India for her movie Bulbul-e-Paristan. She produced, directed and acted in multiple films and was the mother of the legendary actress Zubeida. Her daughter went on to become the first actress in an Indian talkie.

Zubaida Daughter of Fatima Begum

Indian stamp issued in 2013 in honor of Sulochana (Ruby Meyers). She was a Baghdadi Jew from Poona.

 Jaddan Bai, Karan Diwan, Nargis, Jaimani Diwan

 The half-sister of Jawaharlal Nehru, Jaddanbai Hussain was the first female composer to make it in Bollywood. She did try her hand at singing but found it difficult because she didn’t really have any professional training. However, she soon enrolled under gurus and gained fame especially for her ghazals and was invited to various locations to perform.

She even became a play actor and began her own production company called Sangeet Films. And composed the music for the movies produced under that banner.

 Jaddanbai-1892-1949-extreme-right-with-Dilip-Kumar-Nargis-and-Mehboob

 LEELA CHITNIS

 Master Vinayak and Leela Chitnis in 'Chaaya' (“Holy Crime”) 1936

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 Nutan with mother Shobhana Samarth and actor Motilal

 Remembering Leela Chitnis on death anniversary.

 RUBY MYERS

 SHOBHANA SAMARTH

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Jaddan Bai with Her Daughter Nargis