Born in
NavsariNavsari is a City and a Municipal Corporation only 40 km south of Surat on old Surat-Mumbai Highway in the state of Gujarat, India. The Navsari administrative district is named after it.-Geography:...
in
GujaratGujarat is the westernmost state in India. It is home to the Gujarati speaking people of India. The state encompasses major sites of the Indus Valley Civilization such as Lothal and Dholavira. Gujarat played an important role in the economic history of India throughout the history of India...
,
Ketan Mehta was educated in
DelhiDelhi, known locally as Dilli , and also by the official name National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest metropolis by population in India...
and graduated in film direction from
Film and Television Institute of IndiaFilm and Television Institute of India , is an autonomous Institute under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India . It is situated in the premises of the erstwhile Prabhat Film Company in Pune, India...
,
PunePune , formerly known as Punawadi or Punya-Nagari or Poona, is the eighth largest city in India, and the second largest in the state of Maharashtra, after Mumbai...
,
MaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located on the western coast of India. Maharashtra is a part of Western India. It is India's third largest state by area and second largest by population....
and has eight
feature filmIn the film industry, a feature film is a film made for initial distribution in theaters and being the "main attraction" of the screening...
s, seven
documentariesDocumentary film is a broad category of visual expressions that is based on the attempt, in one fashion or another, to "document" reality. Although "documentary film" originally referred to movies shot on film stock, it has subsequently expanded to include video and digital productions that can...
and a
television serialA television serial is a type of television program that may take one of the following forms:* A mini-series* A soap opera* A telenovela...
to his credit. His repertoire of themes include
comedyComedy as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse generally intended to amuse, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in Ancient Greece...
,
satireSatire is often strictly defined as a literary genre or form; although in practice it is also found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, human or individual vices, follies, abuses, or shortcomings are held up to censure by means of ridicule, derision, burlesque, irony, or other methods,...
,
romanceWhile most films have some aspect of romance between characters a romance film can be loosely defined as any film in which the central plot revolves around the romantic involvement of the story's protagonists. Common themes include the characters making decisions based on a newly-found romantic...
,
violenceViolence is the expression of physical or verbal force against self or other, compelling action against one's will on pain of being hurt. Variant uses of the term refer to the destruction of non-living objects . Worldwide, violence is used as a tool of manipulation and also is an area of concern...
and
rebellionRebellion is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors from civil disobedience and mass nonviolent resistance, to violent and organized attempts to destroy an established authority such as the government. Those who participate in rebellions are...
. He is married to actress
Deepa Sahi-Early life:Sahi was born in India in Dehradun. Her family later shifted to Canada but she continued to stay in India.-Early career:An alumnus of National School of Drama, Delhi, Sahi started off with a theater career, with strong Leftist leanings and Social Activism a core value of the productions...
who has acted in few of his films.
Ketan Mehta's very first film
Bhavni BhavaiBhavni Bhavai is a 1980 Gujarati film directed by Ketan Mehta. Ketan Mehta's debut film is a successful adaptation of folk idioms into cinema. The film is dedicated to Bertolt Brecht, Goscinny and to the inventor of the Bhavai, Asait Thakore, who was a Brahmin outcast and lived among the lower...
won him instant acclaim. His movies have been selected for various international film festivals such as
NantesNantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, while its metropolitan area is the eighth with 804,833 inhabitants at a 2008 estimate....
(
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
) and the
MoscowMoscow is the capital and the largest city of Russia. It is also the largest metropolitan area in Europe, and ranks among the largest urban areas in the world. Moscow is a major political, economic, cultural, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the world, a...
Film Festival, where his movies have won numerous awards over the years, including:
- Best Art Direction
- Best Editing
- Best Jury
- Best Film
Mirch Masala-Story:The film opens with an arrogant
subedar and his soldiers rampaging through a village. The subedar has an eye for women and soon spots Sonbai on the riverbank. Sonbai is an intelligent, beautiful and strong woman. Her confidence intrigues the
subedar.The film moves deeper into...
was one of Ketan Mehta's triumphant efforts which won him the Best Film Award at
HawaiiHawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states, and is the only state made up entirely of islands. It is located on an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of Australia. The state was admitted to the Union on August...
. It was released to 52 cinemas in the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Ketan Mehta has also had the honour of serving as a member of the Jury in various national and international film festivals. At present he is working on two films, both set in contemporary India. One is an Indian romance and the other a murder thriller. He did a biopic
SardarSardar is a 1993 Indian biopic on Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, one of India's greatest freedom fighters, directed by Ketan Mehta and written by noted playwright Vijay Tendulkar.-Plot synopsis:...
, on the life of
Sardar Vallabhbhai PatelVallabhbhai Patel was a political and social leader of India who played a major role in the country's struggle for independence and guided its integration into a united, independent nation...
. Another famous Mehta film is
Maya MemsaabMaya Memsaab is a 1993 Hindi film directed by Ketan Mehta...
.
Mangal Pandey: The RisingMangal Pandey: The Rising or The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey is an Indian movie based on the life of Mangal Pandey, an Indian soldier who is known for his role in the Indian rebellion of 1857...
, his most recent directorial venture with English and
HindiStandard Hindi, also known as High Hindi, Nagari Hindi or Literary Hindi is a standardised register of Hindi. It is one of the 22 languages with official status in India, and is used, along with English, for administration of the central government.Standard Hindi is a sanskritised register derived...
. It is a fictionalised account of the 1857
revoltThe Indian Rebellion of 1857 began as a mutiny of sepoys of the British East India Company's army on 10 May, 1857, in the town of Meerut, and soon erupted into other mutinies and civilian rebellions largely in the upper Gangetic plain and central India, with the major hostilities confined to...
and starred
Aamir KhanAamir Khan is an Indian film actor, director and producer. Khan worked in a number of critically and commercially successful films and has established himself as one of the leading actors of Hindi cinema...
in the role of
Mangal PandeyMangal Pandey was a sepoy in the 34th Regiment of the Bengal Native Infantry of the English East India Company. He is widely seen in India as one of its first freedom fighters...
was average at box office.
Filmography
- Bhavni Bhavai
Bhavni Bhavai is a 1980 Gujarati film directed by Ketan Mehta. Ketan Mehta's debut film is a successful adaptation of folk idioms into cinema. The film is dedicated to Bertolt Brecht, Goscinny and to the inventor of the Bhavai, Asait Thakore, who was a Brahmin outcast and lived among the lower...
(1980The year 1980 in film involved some significant events.-Events:*May 21 - The Empire Strikes Back is released and is the biggest grosser of the year just as its precessdor, Star Wars did three years before....
)
- Holi
Holi is a 1984 Indian film directed by Ketan Mehta, whose socially conscious work has been compared to American director, Spike Lee. The film is based on eponymous play by Marathi writer, Mahesh Elkunchwar...
(984 in film|11985-Events:* 3 December - Roger Moore steps down from the role of James Bond after twelve years and seven films. He is replaced by Timothy Dalton.* The Academy Award for Best Picture was won by Out of Africa, while the highest grossing film was Back to the Future.-Top grossing films :source:...
)
- Hero Hiralal
Hero Hiralal is a 1988 directed by Ketan Mehta. It is a movie about an auto rickshaw driver who falls in love with a film actress.The movie had some good performances by the lead actors and by Saeed Jaffrey and Satish Shah in their supporting roles....
(1988-Top grossing films :source: http://boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?yr=1988&p=.htm- Awards :Academy Awards:* Alice * Alien Nation, starring James Caan and Mandy Patinkin* Amsterdamned...
)
- Maya Memsaab
Maya Memsaab is a 1993 Hindi film directed by Ketan Mehta...
(1992The year 1992 in film involved many significant films. -Top grossing films :source: - Awards :Academy Awards:*Article 99B...
)
- Sardar
Sardar is a 1993 Indian biopic on Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, one of India's greatest freedom fighters, directed by Ketan Mehta and written by noted playwright Vijay Tendulkar.-Plot synopsis:...
(1993The year 1993 in film involved many significant films. -Events:...
)
- Oh Darling! Yeh Hai India
Oh Darling! Yeh Hai India is an Indian film starring Shahrukh Khan, Deepa Sahi, Jaaved Jaffrey.- Synopsis :Don Quixote is a Bombay-based gangster. His dream is to take control of India, and sell it at a well-attended and much publicized auction...
(1995The year 1995 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* March 22 - The Dogme 95 movement is officially announced in Paris by Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg....
)
- Aar Ya paar
Aar Ya Paar is a 1997 Bollywood film produced and directed by Ketan Mehta. The film stars Jackie Shroff, Deepa Sahi , Ritu Shivpuri, Paresh Rawal and Kamal Sidhu. The music is by Viju Shah-Story:...
(1997)
- Mangal Pandey: The Rising
Mangal Pandey: The Rising or The Rising: Ballad of Mangal Pandey is an Indian movie based on the life of Mangal Pandey, an Indian soldier who is known for his role in the Indian rebellion of 1857...
(2005The year 2005 in film saw many new films released worldwide, including several major mainstream sequels, prequels, and remakes as well as original films.-Top–grossing films:...
)
- Rang Rasiya
Rang Rasiya is an Indian drama film based on the life of the 19th century Indian painter Raja Ravi Varma. The film is directed and co-produced by Ketan Mehta, and stars Randeep Hooda, Nandana Sen and a newcomer Triptha Parashar in the lead roles....
(2008The year 2008 in film saw many new films released worldwide, including several major mainstream sequels, prequels, and remakes as well as original films.-Top grossing films:...
)