Raja Thakur

Raja Thakur (1923–1975) was an Indian film director who worked primarily in Marathi cinema. He earned National and State-level honors for his films Me Tulas Tujhya Angani (1960), Rangalya Ratree Ashya (1962), Ektee (1968), Mumbaicha Jawai (1970), Gharkul (1971), and Jawai Vikat Ghene Aahe (1972). His four films earned the National Award for Best Feature Film in Marathi: Mi Tulas Tujhya Angani (1955), Rangalya Ratri Asha (1962), Ekati (1968), and Mumbaicha Javai (1970). Thakur was born in Phonda, Maharashtra, in the year 1923. He began his cinema career as an assistant to Master Vinayak and Raja Paranjape, and in the 1960s, he directed a number of films centered on stories about middle-class Maharashtrians. Before the comedies of Dada Kondke were popular in the 1970s, this genre was a recurring component in the directorial works of Thakur and Rajdutt, who dominated the industry at the time. Under the brand "Nav Chitra," he also produced films.   Bhimsen Joshi sang Hindustani classical music-based songs in the 1955 social film Me Tulas Tujhya Angani, which was produced under his company Nav Chitra. At the 3rd National Film Awards, the film received the President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film. Following up on Master Vinayak's cinema adaptations of works by Damuanna Malvankar and V. S. Jog, Thakur directed the 1957 comedy Gharcha Jhala Thoda. Rangalya Ratree Ashya, a musical film featuring Arun Sarnaik as a brilliant drummer who falls in love with a courtesan, was released in 1962. It was based on a narrative written by novelist Ranjit Desai and starred Arun Sarnaik as a brilliant drummer who falls in love with a courtesan. Thakur received another President's Silver Medal for the film at the 10th National Film Awards. Ektee (1968), starring Kashinath Ghanekar, earned Thakur his third National Film Award at the 16th National Film Awards.  Mumbaicha Jawai, a film from the 1970s, depicted cosmopolitan Mumbai and how a newly married couple embraces social norms while living in a crowded chawl. The film was also released in the Soviet Union, and Basu Chatterjee later adapted it into a Hindi film, Piya Ka Ghar. The film earned the fourth National Film Award at the 18th National Film Awards, as well as the Maharashtra State Film Award for "Best Film." He went on to win the Maharashtra State Film Award for Gharkul (1971) and Jawai Vikat Ghene Aahe (1972), sponsored by the Maharashtra State Government, for the next two years in a row (1972). Thakur directed his debut Hindi film, Zakhmee, in 1975. Sunil Dutt, Rakesh Roshan, and Asha Parekh starred in the film, which was produced by Tahir Hussain. His Hindi film Raeeszada was released in 1976. Vikram, Zarina Wahab, Rakesh Roshan, Shriram Lagoo, and Helen appeared in the film, which was produced by V. L. Khare. He also directed the English film Birbal My Brother in 1972.

Filmography as director:

 Ajab Tujhe Sarkar (Raja Thakur) 1971

 Bajiravacha Beta (Raja Thakur) 1971

 Birbal my Brother (Raja Thakur) 1972

 Dhananjay (Raja Thakur) 1966

 Ekati (Raja Thakur) 1968

 Gaja Gauri (Raja Thakur) 1958

 Gharcha Jhala Thoda (Raja Thakur) 1957

 Gharkul (Raja Thakur) 1970

 Javai Vikat Ghene Aahe (Raja Thakur) 1973

 Mazhe Ghar Majhi Manse (Raja Thakur) 1956

 Mi Tulas Tujhya Angani (Raja Thakur) 1955

 Mumbaicha Javai (Raja Thakur) 1970

 Pahure Kiti Vaat! (Raja Thakur) 1963

 Putra Vhava Aisa (Raja Thakur) 1961

 Putra Whava Aisa (Raja Thakur) 1961

 Raeeszada (Raja Thakur) 1976

 Raigadacha Rajbandi (Raja Thakur) 1965

 Rajmanya Rajashri (Raja Thakur) 1959

 Rangalya Ratri Asha (Raja Thakur) 1962

 Reshmachya Gaathi (Raja Thakur) 1954

 Sant Gora Kumbhar (Raja Thakur) 1967

 Utavala Narad (Raja Thakur) 1957

 Zakhmi (Raja Thakur) 1975

Bolavita Dhani (Raja Thakur) 1953

Awards:

Year	Award	Category	Work	Notes
1955	National Film Award	National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Marathi	Me Tulas Tujhya Angani	Shared with production house Nav Chitra
1962			Rangalya Ratree Ashya	Shared with production house The Maharashtra Film Industrial Co-Operative Society Ltd.
1968			Ektee	Shared with producer G. Chaugle
1970			Mumbaicha Jawai	Shared with producer Tushar Pradhan
	Maharashtra State Film Awards	Best Film
1971			Gharkul
1972			Jawai Vikat Ghene Aahe