Durga Khote - Later Career

Later Career

Durga Khote essayed a wide variety of roles over a career that was not only long but also untouched by scandal. She was the inspiration for several generations of Indian actresses, including veterans like the late Shobhna Samarth, who frequently spoke of how she had been inspired by Khote's example.

During later years, she played several important character roles, such as the mother of the protagonist. Her portrayal of Jodhabai, the queen of Akbar torn between duty towards her husband and love towards her son in Mughal-e-Azam (1960) was well received. She went on to play other widely appreciated character roles in later movies such as the role of the grandmother of the heroine in Bobby (1973), the hero's aunt in Abhimaan (1973), and thee really memorableBidaai (1974), where she played a mother, a very sensitive role that can make one cry and received the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award.

In 1963, she acted in Merchant Ivory's debut film, The Householder (1963), and her final memorable role was in Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Bawarchi (1972).

She acted in over 200 films in her career. By the 1980s she successfully diversified into production of short films, ad films and documentaries by setting up Fact Films and, later, Durga Khote Productions, which produced the Doordarshan TV series Wagle Ki Duniya.