Kanhaiyalal Chaturvedi

Kanhaiyalal Chaturvedi

Kanhaiyalal was born in Varanasi into a theatrical family. His father, Pandit Bhairodutt Choube, owned a drama company but disapproved of his son’s interest in acting. Undeterred, Kanhaiyalal began working backstage and gradually transitioned into small stage roles. After his father's death, he moved to Bombay to pursue a career in cinema—initially aspiring to become a writer and director. However, fate had other plans, and he made his screen debut as an extra in Sagar Ka Sher. He rose to national and international fame for his iconic portrayal of the scheming moneylender Sukhilala in Mehboob Khan’s Mother India (1957), one of Indian cinema’s most legendary villains. He had originally played the same role in Aurat (1940), making him the first Indian actor to reprise a character in a remake 17 years later. Mother India also earned the distinction of being India’s first official entry to the Academy Awards (Oscars) for Best International Feature Film—cementing Kanhaiyalal’s performance in global film history. Known for his mastery of negative and elderly roles, Kanhaiyalal acted in over 100 films including Ganga Jamuna, Upkar, Apna Desh, Dushman, and Grahasti. He also wrote dialogues and lyrics for films like Sadhana. His cinematic legacy lives on through the 2022 documentary Naam Tha Kanhaiyalal, produced by his daughter Hemaa Singh. TMDB mini biography by: Ashvin Borad

  • Title: Kanhaiyalal Chaturvedi
  • Popularity: 0.5315
  • Known For: Acting
  • Birthday: 1910-01-01
  • Place of Birth: Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India
  • Homepage:
  • Also Known As: Kanaiya Lal, Lala, Munim, Sukhilala, Kanhaiyalal
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Kanhaiyalal Chaturvedi Movies

  • 1957
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    Mother India

    Mother India

    7.1 1957 HD

    A poverty-stricken woman raises her sons through many trials and tribulations. But no matter the struggles, always sticks to her own moral code.

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  • 1969
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    Dharti Kahe Pukar Ke

    Dharti Kahe Pukar Ke

    1 1969 HD

    Gangaram, a farmer, has two younger step-brothers, Moti and Shivram. Supported by Gangaram, Moti has gone to Calcutta to be a lawyer, while Shivram...

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  • 1964
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    Zindagi

    Zindagi

    1 1964 HD

    Beena falls in love with Rajan after he rescues her from some goons. Soon they marry and she is pregnant. The trouble starts when Beena spends the...

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  • 1966
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    Gaban

    Gaban

    10 1966 HD

    Based on novel by Munshi Prem Chand. Believing himself to be a suspect for embezzlement in British India, a man must testify against non-violent...

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  • 1970
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    Samaj Ko Badal Dalo

    Samaj Ko Badal Dalo

    1 1970 HD

    Two close friends, Vimla and Chhaya, part ways when their friendship turns bitter. Years later, when Chhaya is arrested for a crime, Vimla, a lawyer,...

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  • 1960
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    The Test

    The Test

    6 1960 HD

    The postmaster of a village receives a check for 500,000 rupees, for the purpose of bequeathing it to the village’s most upstanding citizen.

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  • 1955
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    Naata

    Naata

    1 1955 HD

    A woman describes the relationship between her sister and a postmaster

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  • 1974
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    Dost

    Dost

    7 1974 HD

    Maanav is an orphan who was brought up by a Catholic Priest. After completing his M.A. he returns home and finds out that his mentor is dead. He...

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  • 1978
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    Satyam Shivam Sundaram

    Satyam Shivam Sundaram

    7 1978 HD

    Rajeev falls in love with Roopa, a beautiful singer who hides the fact that half her face is disfigured. However, he soon discovers her secret after...

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  • 1967
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    Ram Aur Shyam

    Ram Aur Shyam

    7.4 1967 HD

    Abused by an oppressive brother-in-law Gajendra (Pran), Ramchandra (Dilip Kumar) runs away from home, and ends up in a small village where he is...

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  • 1962
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    Son of India

    Son of India

    6 1962 HD

    The film is based on an incredible true story about a village woman who gets lost at a railway station and waits fourteen years for her husband to...

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  • 1967
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    Diwana

    Diwana

    9 1967 HD

    Meet Pyarelal, a simple-minded, naive young man, orphaned at birth, living with a Muslim landlady, Fatima, who treats him like her son. When the...

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  • 1977
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    Duniyadari

    Duniyadari

    1 1977 HD

    A Bollywood drama.

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  • 1963
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    Grahasti

    Grahasti

    1 1963 HD

    Drama about a large Indian family coping with revelations about the fathers past.

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  • 1961
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    Gunga Jumna

    Gunga Jumna

    5.6 1961 HD

    Widowed Govindi lives a poor lifestyle in Haripur along with two sons, Gungaram and Jumna. While Jumna is studious, Gungaram is the opposite, but has...

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  • 1973
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    Heera

    Heera

    1 1973 HD

    A man is arrested for murder but escapes and becomes a bandit to clear his name and find the real killers.

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  • 1972
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    Apna Desh

    Apna Desh

    3.5 1972 HD

    When it's discovered that four prominent members of the community are crooks and black marketeers, young Akash (Rajesh Khanna) -- posing as an...

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  • 1980
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    Hum Paanch

    Hum Paanch

    6.9 1980 HD

    Tyrannical and wealthy Veer Pratap Singh, rules over a small town - ruthlessly. Whoever opposes him is crushed. He is attracted to women, and has a...

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  • 1965
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    Oonche Log

    Oonche Log

    6.2 1965 HD

    A blind, principled Major Chandrakant takes in a stranger on the run, unaware the man murdered his younger, irresponsible son who had abandoned a...

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  • 1965
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    Noor Mahal

    Noor Mahal

    1 1965 HD

    A story of a revenge taken by Vir Singh in greediness to get the throne of his brother, who was the real king.

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  • 1966
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    Biradari

    Biradari

    7 1966 HD

    Seema lives a wealthy lifestyle with her widowed mom in Bombay, India. Her mother is a compassionate soul who rents out several rooms in a self-owned...

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  • 1971
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    Banphool

    Banphool

    6.3 1971 HD

    Haria lives with his widowed and elderly grandmother at a tea estate and works as Elephant Driver. He has no knowledge of his biological father, as...

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  • 1954
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    Naukari

    Naukari

    6.2 1954 HD

    The comic, tragic and heartrending saga of Ratan Kumar Chaudhary, who leaves his village, aging mom and seriously ill sister, to obtain employment in...

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  • 1963
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    Meri Surat Teri Ankhen

    Meri Surat Teri Ankhen

    1 1963 HD

    Raj Kumar is a wealthy businessman and dislikes everything ugly. When his wife, Kamla, becomes pregnant and gives birth to an ugly son, he asks the...

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  • 1977
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    Jadu Tona

    Jadu Tona

    6 1977 HD

    A family is plagued by the vengeful spirit of a murdered man who uses the body of an innocent child to enact his revenge.

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  • 1945
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    Ramayani

    Ramayani

    1 1945 HD

    Ramayani is a 1945 Hindi mythological film directed by Sarvottam Badami for Purnima Productions. The music direction was by S. N. Tripathi with...

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  • 1958
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    Sahara

    Sahara

    7 1958 HD

    Sahara is a 1958 Indian Bollywood film directed by Lekhraj Bhakri. The film stars Meena Kumari in the lead role of Leela and relates her life story.

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  • 1980
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    Sitara

    Sitara

    1 1980 HD

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  • 1969
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    Bandhan

    Bandhan

    6 1969 HD

    Jeevanlal lives in a small village in India with his wife, Sita, a son, Dharmchand and daughter, Meena, and makes a living by stealing which causes...

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  • 1960
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    Ghunghat

    Ghunghat

    1 1960 HD

    An adaptation of Rabindranath Tagore's 1906 Bengali story Noukadubi (The Wreck).

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  • 1965
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    Himalay Ki Godmein

    Himalay Ki Godmein

    5.5 1965 HD

    Sunil Mehra has successfully completed his medical studies and is now a qualified doctor, who can now practice medicine anywhere in India. He chooses...

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  • 1967
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    Dulhan Ek Raat Ki

    Dulhan Ek Raat Ki

    1 1967 HD

    Arrogant son of a wealthy, blind woman, rapes his mother's nurse and abandons her. She gets pregnant but the child does not live, and she continues...

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  • 1954
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    Bahut Din Hue

    Bahut Din Hue

    1 1954 HD

    Kidnapped by a villainous sorcerer, young mother Balanagamma (Pushpavalli) remains in captivity for more than 12 years, spurning her captor's sexual...

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  • 1969
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    Chirag

    Chirag

    1 1969 HD

    When Ajay (Sunil Dutt) meets Asha (Asha Parekh), he mistakenly believes she's wealthy. The fact that she's not, however, doesn't prevent him from...

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  • 1966
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    Daadi Maa

    Daadi Maa

    1 1966 HD

    Parvati seeks to heal the breach between her husband and his mother

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  • 1967
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    Aurat

    Aurat

    1 1967 HD

    A woman responsible for her mother and 7 siblings faces challenges after marrying a widower with 6 children.

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  • 1977
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    Palkon Ki Chhaon Mein

    Palkon Ki Chhaon Mein

    1 1977 HD

    When Ravi gets a job as a post officer in a village, he falls in love with Mohini, not knowing she loves another

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  • 1951
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    Hum Log

    Hum Log

    8.8 1951 HD

    An impoverished family faces illness and financial challenges after one of them is sent to prison.

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  • 1952
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    Daag

    Daag

    6 1952 HD

    Shankar and Paro love each other, but their relationship is strained by his drinking problem and Paro's sudden wealth.

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  • 1944
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    Lal Haveli

    Lal Haveli

    1 1944 HD

    Mukta and Anand are childhood friends and love each other. But Mukta belongs to higher social class than Anand and her family wants to arrange her...

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  • 1949
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    Jeet

    Jeet

    5 1949 HD

    India has finally won independence from British rule, and there are signs of progress among the population. One such sign of progress is in the...

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  • 1969
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    Doli

    Doli

    6 1969 HD

    Amar and Prem, college friends, and Asha and Shobana form friendships. Marriages are arranged, but dowry demands a US ticket. Prem returns, becomes...

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  • 1967
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    Upkar

    Upkar

    5.2 1967 HD

    Widowed Radha lives in rural India in the 1960s, along with two sons: Bharat and Puran. While she would like to educate her sons and ensure that they...

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  • 1952
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    Mr. Sampat

    Mr. Sampat

    1 1952 HD

    The charming Mr. Sampat weaves his way into theatrical company with his moneymaking schemes, only to cause the everyone involved to go bankrupt,...

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  • 1978
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    Daku Aur Jawan

    Daku Aur Jawan

    1 1978 HD

    Birju and Ramu are brothers and have a friendly bond with each other, They do a lot of pranks with the villagers, but the pressure of the landlord...

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  • 1969
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    Meri Bhabhi

    Meri Bhabhi

    1 1969 HD

    A simple-minded, yet loving young couple, Rajoo (Sunil Dutt), and his wife Maya, who allow their child to be adopted by Rajoo's sister-in-law/Bhabhi,...

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  • 1965
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    Rishte Naate

    Rishte Naate

    1 1965 HD

    Thakur Narendrapal Singh is a generous and kind-hearted landlord and zamindar. He has a daughter Kalpana and a son Raja. Distrusting his son and his...

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  • 1940
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    Aurat

    Aurat

    5 1940 HD

    Radha is a resolute mother, who strives hard against poverty and a lecherous money lender to feed her two sons who grew up with contrasting...

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  • 1963
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    Bharosa

    Bharosa

    1 1963 HD

    Ramdas is a trusting individual, and trusts everybody around him. When times turn bad for him, he entrusts the life of his son, Bansi, to his trusted...

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  • 1941
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    Nai Roshni

    Nai Roshni

    1 1941 HD

    A neglected wife, Indira, schemes to win back her philandering bank manager husband, Bihari. She uses an unwitting musician, Madan, as a pawn, making...

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  • 1970
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    Jeevan Mrityu

    Jeevan Mrityu

    5.8 1970 HD

    An honest bank manager is arrested for embezzlement on the eve of his marriage. After his release, he seeks out his fiancee and decides to take...

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  • 1944
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    Dost

    Dost

    1 1944 HD

    A cruel uncle usurps his niece's inheritance, but a kind doctor and his wife help her reclaim it. Their lives intertwine with betrayal, a scheming...

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  • 1944
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    Gaali

    Gaali

    1 1944 HD

    An unusual story of Mangala, a young blind widow who believes her deceased husband still communicates with her

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  • 1945
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    Shri Krishnarjun Yudh

    Shri Krishnarjun Yudh

    1 1945 HD

    Chitrasen inadvertently humiliates Gabal Rishi, who approaches Bhagwan Shri Kishan and prays that the former be punished. Kishanji readily agrees to...

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  • 1969
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    Doli

    Doli

    6 1969 HD

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