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Balraj Sahni

Personal Profile

Balraj Sahni
  • Birth Name:
    Yudhishthir Sahni
  • Common Name:
    Balraj
  • Date of Birth:
    May 1, 1913
  • Zodiac Sign:
    Taurus
  • Place of Birth:
    Rawalpindi, Punjab, British India
  • Place of Death:
    Bombay, Maharashtra, India
  • Date of Death:
    April 13, 1973
  • Cause of Death:
    Heart Attack
  • Sex:
    Male
  • Nationality:
    Indian
  • Religion:
    Hinduism
  • Education:

    Punjab University

    University of Harvard

Family

Balraj Sahni
  • Brother:
    Bhisham Sahni
  • Spouse:
    Damayanti
  • Son:
    Parikshat Sahni
  • Daughter:
    Shabnam

Career

Balraj Sahni

Trivia

Balraj Sahni
  • Balraj Sahni also wrote in Punjabi and contributed to the Punjabi magzine Preetlari .
    submitted by - Rokit Sharma
  • Sahni was also a recipient of the Padma Shri Award (1969).
    submitted by - Amitabh Dhiman
  • Sahni also dabbled in screenwriting; he wrote the 1951 movie Baazi which starred Dev Anand and was directed by Guru Dutt.
    submitted by - Mandy John
  • He was one of the founding fathers of the IPTA (Indian People's Theatre Association) movement and known for his leftist leanings.
    submitted by - suresh kumar
  • Balraj contributed many poems and short stories in magazines and also penned his autobiography, Meri Filmi Aatmakatha. Sahni was an extremely well read and politically conscious person.
    submitted by - Sanjeev Dhiman
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Biography

Balraj Sahni
Last Updated: Monday, October 19, 2009

Balraj SahniIt was IPTA or the people's theatre that the legendary actor Balraj Sahani started his career with. This theatre had many communists in it and soon he mingled with them. Then his debut film 'Dharti Ke Laal' based on Bengal famine happened and got appreciated very much. But as far as Balraj Sahani was concerned, though he played a poverty-stricken peasant, not much happened in his acting front.He had to go back to his theatre and as the fire against communists spread, he was arrested in 1951. But Balraj Sahani was allowed to shoot for his film 'Hulchul', escorted by policemen. Fortunately, much before the shooting was over he was released and was free to complete the rest of the movie peacefully.

For Balraj Sahani, the real moment of recognition came with 'Hum Log' in 1951 where he played an unemployed youth. In 1953, he was signed by Bimal Roy for 'Do Bigha Zameen' and played the role of a harassed farmer most convincingly. One remarkable thing about Balraj Sahani was that he believed in putting the characters he played into practice. For his role in 'Do Bigha Zameen' he was required to pull a rickshaw. Balraj Sahani in fact practiced pulling a rickshaw for 15 days in the busy streets of Calcutta before shooting started. Much in the same way, for his movie 'Kabuliwala', Balraj Sahani lived with some Kabuliwalas in Mumbai and imitated their mannerisms.

This kind of dedication and passion for acting is missing in today's actors who believe in taking everything for granted. He did some more films like 'Garam Coat', 'Seema' and 'Anuradha'. Balraj Sahani shifted to character roles like in 'Ek Phool Do Mali' starring Sanjay Khan and Sadhana. He also did some multi-starrer movies like 'Waqt'. But it was in 1973 that he reached the zenith of his career with 'Garam Hawa'. It came at the right time because soon after he expired and we lost a gem of an actor.

In 'Garam Hawa' he was portrayed as a patriarch of a Muslim family living in a country ripped apart by communal riots and partition. Balraj Sahani had much to offer in this role and is still remembered for his breath-taking performance. It would be wrong to say that he concentrated only in such movies. He has done equally good commercial movies where he got to pair with Nargis, Meena Kumari and Nutan. Balraj Sahani was a complete actor and it becomes very difficult to categorise him.

Filmography

Balraj Sahni

Balraj Sahni Images & Videos

 
Ek Phool Do Mali Movie Song - Sajana Sajana videos

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