Smita Patil

Smita Patil was a major player in the development of India's alternative cinema during the '70s and early '80s. A devoted feminist outspoken about the ways in which traditional systems continue to oppress women, she was a model for the "new Indian woman" who was independent, sexually confident, and concerned about the world. In college, she began working in student films and as a TV newscaster. Her first major film role was in Shyam Benegal's 1975 film Manthan, but she did not become a major artist until she appeared in his 1977 film Bhumika. Many offers for films rolled in after that, but she refused any that did not support her political and feminist agendas. She held her high standard until the early '80s when she finally realized that by only accepting the few roles that fell into the category of alternative cinema that she could not have much affect on the mainstream women she'd hoped to reach. She then reluctantly began accepting mainstream roles, some of which she felt were exploitative and undignified. When not acting, she kept herself active in women's issues; she even set up a women's refuge in Bombay. With her two commercial films, Ardh Satya and Umbartha, she was finally able to bring notions of alternative cinema to the general public. On December 13, 1986, 17 days after giving birth to a son, Patil died of a brain hemorrhage in Bombay's Jaslok Hospital. She was only 31 years old.

~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide