Lalita Pawar was born as Amba Laxman Rao Sagun in 18 April, 1916 in an orthodox family in a village, Yevle in Nashik. Her father Laxman Rao Shagun was a rich silk and cotton piece goods merchant. She was earlier married to Ganpatrao Pawar who later got involved with her younger sister so she left him and married producer Rajprakash Gupta. The couple had a son.

Film Career of Lalita Pawar
Lalita started her acting career began at age nine, as a child artist in the film Raja Harishchandra (1928), and later progressed to play lead roles in silent era films and 1940`s Hindi cinema. She was a prolific Indian actor, who was famous as character actress and appeared in over 700 films in Hindi and Marathi cinema. Her best films include films like Netaji Palkar (1938) made by Bhalji Pendharkar, Navyug Chitrapat`s Amrit, New Hana Pictures` Sant Damaji, and Chhaya Films` Gora Kumbhar. Her other memorable performances were in the film, Anari (1959), Shri 420 and Mr & Mrs 55.

Lalita Pawar`s former husband Ganpatrao Pawar directed most of her later silent and initial sound films. She was the co producer and also an actress in a silent film, Kailash (1932), and later also produced another film, Duniya Kya Hai in 1938, a talkie. In 1942, film actor Bhagwan Dada slapped her, during a film shoot, which unfortunately resulted in facial paralysis and a burst in a left eye vein. Even after three years of treatment, she was left with a defective left eye. Finally, she left doing lead roles, and switched to character roles, which got her much of her fame. She was particularly known for playing maternal figures, especially impious matriarchs or mothers-in-law. She also notably played the role of the stern but kind, Mrs. L. D`Sa in Anari (1959) with Raj Kapoor, working under Hrishikesh Mukherjee`s direction. Lalita Pawar played the lead role in the film Himmat-e-Marda (1935). Her performances in Professor (1962) and the hunchback Manthara in Ramanand Sagar`s television series Ramayan are still loved and remembered by the audience.

Pawar died on February 24, 1998 in Aundh, Pune and left behind her husband, Rajprakash Gupta, a son and daughter-in-law, who stay in Mumbai. In 1959, she was awarded the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for her role in Anari and in 1961; she received Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for her performances.

Selected Filmography of Lalita Pawar