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Raja Harishchandra (1913)

| Short | 3 May 1913 (India)
Raja Harishchandra Poster
The film opens with a Ravi Varma like tableau showing King Harishchandra, his wife Taramati and his young son. The king is teaching his son archery. They go on a hunt. The king enters an ... See full summary »

Director:

Dhundiraj Govind Phalke

Writers:

Dhundiraj Govind Phalke, Ranchhodbai Udayram (story)

Stars:

D.D. Dabke, P.G. Sane, Bhalachandra D. Phalke | See full cast & crew »
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Cast

Cast overview:
D.D. Dabke D.D. Dabke ... Raja Harishchandra
P.G. Sane P.G. Sane ... Taramati
Bhalachandra D. Phalke Bhalachandra D. Phalke ... Rohitas
G.V. Sane G.V. Sane ... Vishwamitra
Dattatreya Kshirsagar Dattatreya Kshirsagar
Dattatreya Telang Dattatreya Telang
Ganpat G. Shinde Ganpat G. Shinde
Vishnu Hari Aundhkar Vishnu Hari Aundhkar
Anna Salunke Anna Salunke
Nath T. Telang Nath T. Telang
See full cast »
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Storyline

The film opens with a Ravi Varma like tableau showing King Harishchandra, his wife Taramati and his young son. The king is teaching his son archery. They go on a hunt. The king enters an area controlled by the Sage Vishwamitra. Three furies appear before the king caught in flames. The king tries to rescue them. These fairies try to seduce the king into renouncing his kingdom for his love of truth. The king endures much hardship including being banished from his kingdom before a god appears to reassure everyone that the whole narrative was merely a test of the king's integrity. Written by Sujit R. Varma

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Genres:

Short

Parents Guide:

Add content advisory for parents »
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Details

Country:

India

Language:

Marathi

Release Date:

3 May 1913 (India) See more »

Also Known As:

Harischandra See more »

Company Credits

Production Co:

Phalke Films See more »
Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

First feature length India film. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Harishchandrachi Factory (2009) See more »

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User Reviews

 
Its the first movie from India.
7 August 1999 | by newuser – See all my reviews

Only bits and pieces of this movie are available. I have seen those, its silent, its shaky, its like any other good movie that would come from 1913.

Most of the roles are played by Dadabhai Phalke (Harischandra and his wife) because he could not get any woman to act in front of camera and pretend to be his wife.

But this movie is historical. It is the first movie from India. From this movie Indian film industry graduated to making the most number of movies in the world and being biggest film exporter.

An award has been named after him, Dadabhai Phalke award. which is of same status in India as is Oscar in USA.
23 of 23 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you? | Report this
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