Vijaya Mehta

Vijaya Mehta
Mehta in 2012
Born
Vijaya Jaywant

(1934-11-04)4 November 1934
Baroda, Baroda State, British India
Died30 June 2026(2026-06-30) (aged 91)
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Spouse(s)
Harin Khote
​
(died)​

Farrokh Mehta
​
(died)​
Children3
Awards1975 Sangeet Natak Akademi Award
1985 Asia Pacific Film Festival, Best Actress: Party
1986 National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress: Rao Saheb
1987 Padma Shri

Vijaya Mehta (born Jaywant; 4 November 1934 – 30 June 2026) was an Indian Marathi film and theatre director and an actor in many films in Parallel cinema. Mehta was best known for her acclaimed role in the film Party (1984) and for her directorial ventures, Rao Saheb (1986) and Pestonjee (1988). She was a founder member of Mumbai-based theatre group, Rangayan, with playwright Vijay Tendulkar and actors Arvind Deshpande and Shriram Lagoo. As the founder member of the group, she became a leading figure in the experimental Marathi theatre of the 1960s.

Early life and education

Vijaya Mehta was born as Vijaya Jaywant in Baroda, Baroda State (now in Gujarat) on 4 November 1934.[1][2] She graduated from Mumbai University. She studied theatre with Ebrahim Alkazi in Delhi and with Adi Marzban.

Career

Mehta became a major figure in 1960s Marathi experimental theatre. She was a founder member of theatre group Rangayan with playwright Vijay Tendulkar, Arvind Deshpande and Shriram Lagoo.[3][4]

Her stage production of C. T. Khanolkar's Ek Shoonya Bajirao is considered as a landmark in contemporary Indian theatre. She introduced Bertold Brecht into Marathi theatre with an adaptation of The Caucasian Chalk Circle (Ajab Nyay Vartulacha), and Ionesco with Chairs. She also collaborated on Indo-German theatre projects with German director Fritz Bennewitz, including a traditional performance of Bhasa's Mudrarakshasa with German actors.

Other than Pestonjee, most of her work consists of film and television adaptations of her stage plays.

Recognition and awards

Mehta was awarded the 1975 Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for excellence in Direction.. In 1986 she won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in Rao Saheb (1986).

Personal life and death

Mehta first married Harin Khote, son of actress Durga Khote; Following his early death, she raised their two sons, Ravi Khote and Deven Khote. She later married theatre personality Farrokh Mehta, with whom she has a daughter, Anahita Uberoi.[5]

Mehta died in Mumbai on 30 June 2026, at the age of 91.[6]

Filmography

  • Kalyug (1981) – actor
  • Smriti Chitre (1982, TV film) – director, actor
  • Shakuntalam (1986, TV film) – director
  • Party (1984) – actor
  • Rao Saheb (1985) – director, screenwriter, actor
  • Haveli Bulund Thi (1987, TV film) – director
  • Hamidabai Ki Kothi (1987, TV film) – director
  • Pestonjee (1988) – director, screenwriter
  • Lifeline (1991, TV Series) – director
  • Quest (2006) – actor

Awards

See also

Further reading

  • Abode of Colour, an autobiographical account by Vijaya Mehta[1]
  • Vijaya Mehta on theatre and Guru Mani Madhava Cakyar

References

  1. 1 2 Gulati, Leela; Bagchi, Jasodhara; Mehta, Vijaya (2005). A space of her own : personal narratives of twelve women. London: SAGE. p. 181. ISBN 9780761933151.
  2. ↑ Abhijit Varde: Daughters of Maharashtra: Portraits of Women who are Building Maharastra : Interviews and Photographs, 1997, p. 87
  3. ↑ "Shantata! Awishkar Chalu Aahe". Mumbai Theatre Guide. August 2008.
  4. ↑ "The return of Desdemona". Mumbai Mirror. 25 January 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  5. ↑ Shanta Gokhale (26 November 2012). "Life at play". Pune Mirror.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: deprecated archival service (link)
  6. ↑ "ज्येष्ठ नाट्य दिग्दर्शिका विजया मेहता यांचं निधन, रंगभूमीवरचे अनेक कलाकार घडवणाऱ्या बाई काळाच्या पडद्याआड". Loksatta (in Marathi). 30 June 2026. Retrieved 30 June 2026.
  7. ↑ Awards IMDb.
  8. ↑ "33rd National Film Awards". International Film Festival of India. pp. 28, 36. Archived from the original on 5 May 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  9. ↑ "तन्वीर सन्मान सोहळा - २००९ | Maayboli".
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