In today’s digital world, the only thoughts that come to mind when one mentions the word‘icon’ would be that of a graphic symbol of an app, a file, or even a function as seen on a computer screen. However, the said word has another meaning that is not lost to the world yet. We are referring to a person who is widely admired for having great influence or significance in a particular domain. Among the many icons we know of in India, are the yesteryear actresses who ruled the Indian cinema industry for over four decades.
Let’s start with Devika Rani—the First Lady of Indian Cinema. The grand-niece of Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore schooled in England, locked lips with her husband, Himanshu Rai, in the 1933 film in what was then the longest kiss, and relocated to India the following year to set up Bombay Talkies Studio with him. Through the ’30s and ’40s, Rani starred in socially relevant films such as (1936), (1936), and (1937), turning the spotlight on issues such as prostitution, casteism, and childlessness, and
