After a brief yet eventful career in movies, one of the best actresses of the country Smita Patil passed away on December 13, 1986, at the age of 31, days after giving birth to her son Prateik.
Smita Patil would have turned 60 today. After a brief yet eventful career in movies, she passed away on December 13, 1986, at the age of 31, days after giving birth to her son Prateik. By then, she had already acted in 80 movies — in Hindi, Marathi and several other regional languages — establishing herself as one of the icons of Indian cinema.
How would her life and career have panned out, had she lived? Her elder sister Anita Patil-Deshmukh is quite certain she would have dedicated her time to women and child development and would have turned to direction.
“Smi (as she is fondly called) was already thinking of direction. On the sets of Chidambaram, there is a beautiful photograph of her behind the camera of cinematographer Shaji Karun. She was an avid reader and interested in scriptwriting,” says Patil-Deshmukh, who runs a Mumbai-based NGO called Pukar.
While she essayed numerous women-centric roles — from the firebrand Sonbai fighting against a lusty subedar in Ketan Mehta’s Mirch Masala (1987) to a lonely Muslim wife in Gaman (1978) and a married woman trying to find her own identity in Umbartha (1982) — her involvement with gender centric issues began at home. Her father Shivajirao Patil saw multiple terms as an MLA and led a Gandhian way of life with wife Vidya. At the age of six, Patil and Patil-Deshmukh were members of Rashtra Seva Dal (RSD), and spent every holiday travelling to remote parts of Maharashtra, participating in dance shows.
“We had to set up the stage, dress up ourselves and do our own make-up,” says Patil-Deshmukh. She remembers when Patil bagged her first National Award for Best Actor for Bhumika (1977), she donated the prize money to an organisation working for women. She did the same when she won the award for Chakra (1980).
“Had she been around, she would have been fiercely entrenched in working for women,” says producer-director Mahesh Bhatt, who famously pitted her against Shabana Azmi — then projected as her professional rival — in Arth. The filmmaker doubts she would have continued with a career in films. “It’s motherhood that she was looking forward to,” adds Bhatt. Glimpses of Patil’s longing for motherhood can also be found in the recently released biography of hers, Smita: A Brief Incandescence by Maithili Rao (HarperCollins, Rs 450).
Regarded as one of the finest actors in Indian cinema and theatre, the self-taught flautist and photographer, Shyam Benegal notes, appeared rather ordinary in real life.
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“She blossomed on camera. An instinctive and spontaneous actor, she did not over analyse her roles and the audience loved her spontaneity,” says the filmmaker, who had several films lined up for her, including a character based on a real-life female guerilla war leader during the Telangana movement in the late ’40s.
“I visualised Smita in that role. She had the ability, range and personality to play that character,” says Benegal, who could not think of any other actor in the role.
Alaka Sahani is a prominent film critic and journalist based in Mumbai. With a career spanning over two decades, she has established herself as one of India’s most authoritative voices in cinematic journalism, known for an analytical approach and insights that transcend the standard cycle of celebrity journalism.
Expertise & Accolades
In 2014, Alaka was honoured with the National Film Award for Best Film Critic. Her Swarna Kamal (Golden Lotus) citation specifically lauded her for "highlighting facets of cinema beyond glamour and gossip" and for her ability to delve into the contemporary relevance of iconic filmmakers. Her commitment to journalistic integrity was further recognised in 2019 with a Special Mention at the Red Ink Awards for her investigative feature, 'In Search of a Star'. Her article titled 'People Like Us', published in The Indian Express on March 27, 2022, was shortlisted for Red Ink Award, 2023.
Global Industry Leadership
Alaka’s expertise is sought after by major international and domestic film bodies:
Golden Globes: In 2025, she joined the international voting body for the 83rd Annual Golden Globes.
National Film Awards: She served on the prestigious jury for the 68th National Film Awards, helping select the finest contributions to Indian cinema.
Global Perspective: Her work consistently bridges the gap between commercial Bollywood A-listers and emerging independent talents, offering nuanced insights into both Indian regional cinema and international film trends.
Focus & Vision
Beyond the screen, Alaka is a dedicated observer of Mumbai’s vibrant theatre scene and the historical evolution of the moving image. Through her long-form articles and deep-dive interviews, she continues to challenge "tried-and-tested" templates, providing readers with a deep understanding of the artistic and systemic workings of the Indian and global film industry. ... Read More
After a brief yet eventful career in movies, one of the best actresses of the country Smita Patil passed away on December 13, 1986, at the age of 31, days after giving birth to her son Prateik.
