Smita Talwalkar

Brief Introduction

Smita Talwalkar is a well known Marathi film & television actress, producer and director. She has produced and acted in various super-hit Marathi movies and serials. She has won two National Film Awards for her films ‘Kalat Nakalat’ and ‘Tu Tithe Mee’.

Early Life & Background

Smita was born on 5^th September.

Journey in the industry

Before entering into acting, Smita was a newsreader on television for almost 17 years. Smita’s debut as an actress was with the movie ‘Tu Saubhagyavato Ho’ in 1986. In the same year, she gave another blockbuster movie ‘Gadbad Ghotala’ along with Laxmikant Berde, Ashok Saraf and Nilu Phule. In 1989, she turned producer with the film ‘Kalat Nakalat’ starring Vikram Gokhale, Savita Prabhune and Ashok Saraf. The film was a super-hit and Smita received her first National Film Award for her first film as a producer for ‘Kalat Nakalat’.

In 1991, Smita produced a film ‘Chaukat Raja’ and also played the role of Minal in it. The film was directed by Sanjay Surker, who in future directed super-hit movies under the Smita’s production banner of ‘Asmita Chitra’.

After establishing in the Marathi industry as an actor and producer, Smita made her directorial debut with the comedy film ‘Sawat Mazhi Ladki’ in 1993. Mohan Joshi, Neena Kulkarni, Varsha Usgaonkar & Prashant Damle were seen in the lead roles in this movie. ‘Sawat Mazhi Ladki’ was also produced by Smita and it won the Maharashtra State Award. In 1993, she also acted in the movie ‘Shivrayachi Soon Tararani’ in the role of Yesubai. Meanwhile, Smita also produced and acted in many Marathi serials.

In 1998, Smita produced ‘Tu Tithe Me’, which was a blockbuster movie of 1998. The film starring Suhas Joshi & Mohan Joshi, brought second National Award for Smita. Later, she produced and played a small role in the youth-based movie ‘Saatchya Aat Gharat’ in 2004. In 2006, she produced ‘Anandache Jhaad’. Later, she acted in the various Marathi movies like ‘Checkmate’, ‘Topi Ghala Re’, ‘Janma’, ‘Ya Gol Gol Dabyatla’ and many more. She also played cameo in the movie ‘Shyamche Vadil’. In 2013, she acted in the movie ‘Prem Mhanje Prem Mhanje Prem Asta’, which was directed by her lead actress of ‘Avantika’ Mrunal Kulkarni.

While being a successful producer of films, Smita also became a producer of Marathi serials. She first produced the serial ‘Gharkul’, which was quite popular. In 1998, she produced the serial ‘Avantika’ for Zee Marathi and also played the role of lead’s mother in the serial. After ‘Avantika’, she produced another hit serial ‘Oon Paus’ for the same channel. In 2011, her serial for Star Pravah ‘Suvasini’ won a Ma Ta Sanmaan for the Best Serial. She was also the producer of super-hit historical based show ‘Unch Maaza Zhoka’, which went off air in mid 2013. Smita’s banner ‘Asmita Chitra’ has produced 25 television serials till date.

Smita has also acted and produced many Marathi stage shows. In 2011, she portrayed the role of Janabai in the Marathi play ‘Govind Ghya Kuni Gopal Ghya’.Her production house has produced a 30-minute documentary on the topic of cleanliness for Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation. The documentary featured Sachin Tendulkar as a special guest. She was the jury of various local and international stage shows. She was also the president of the Marathi Cinema Festival.

Another work/business

Smita runs an acting school named ‘Asmita Chitra Academy’ in Pune, Mumbai and Thane. She also runs a gym chain named ‘Talwalkars Gym’.

Personal life

Smita got married to Mr.Talwalkar at the age of 17. The couple has a son Amber Talwalkar, who is the director of ‘Talwalkars Gym’ and a daughter Poornima, who works in ‘Asmita Chitra’ in post-production and also as an editor. Amber is married to the Marathi actress Sulekha Talwalkar, who is currently seen on Zee Marathi’s ‘Shejari Shejari Pakke Shejari’.

In 2010, Smita suffered from the ovarian cancer, but she successfully fought it back with the help of chemotherapy.

Name of Films

Name of Serial

‘Gharkul’ on Sahyadri

‘Peshwai’ on Zee Marathi

‘Avantika’ on Zee Marathi

‘Oon Paus’ on Zee Marathi

‘Katha Eka Anandichi’ on Star Pravah

‘Suvasini’ on Star Pravah

‘Unch Maza Zhoka’ on Zee Marathi

Awards