Durga Khote was the first upper caste Marathi Hindu woman to become an actress. She excelled in her craft leaving a lasting impression with her performance in V. Shantaram`s Amar Jyoti (1936) and Baburao Painter`s Pratibha (1937). The example she set made Indian cinema in all its aspects, acting, direction, production, acceptable as a respectable profession for women of all religions. Acting was at last liberated opprobrium.

This was the probable reason why in its early years the Indian cinema cast Anglo Indian women as the leading ladies. Educated, upper class actors like Durga Khote and Devika Rani, wife of the owner of Bombay Talkies, blazed a trail. The extraordinary Kamlabai Gokhale also merits a mention. She was a doyenne of Marathi theatre and one of the screen`s first professional actresses.

Jaddan Bai, producer, director, incomparable singer, musician and mother of Nargis; Protima Dasgupta produced films; a popular actress in Tamil and Telegu cinema; Shobhana Samarth, queen of mythological films and others deserve a mention while discussing about Indian actresses. Apart from there acting there was something else that common to all these leading ladies. They all turned to direction.

Many other women from every region have made illustrious contributions to Indian cinema despite the constraints they faced and the fundamental machismo of a trade that even today has the difficulty of accepting women except as actresses, musicians, and , increasingly, film editors.

A filmography of Durga Khote will include the following films:

Farebi Jaal	Prithvi Vallabh	Bhabhi	Dharti Kahe Pukar Ke
Ayodhya Ka Raja	Phool	Musafir	Khilona
Maya Machhindra	Rukmini Swayamvar	Raj Tilak	Dharti Ki God Mein
Rajrani Meera	Singaar	Ardhangini	Bawarchi
Seeta	Magroor	Love in Simla	Abhimaan
Inquilab	Nishana	Mughal-e-Azam	Bobby
Amar Jyoti	Humlog	Bhabhi Ki Chudiyan	Bidaai
Saathhi	Aandhiyan	Manmauji	Khushboo
Adhuri Kahani	Anand Bhavan	Masterji	Shaque:
Chamon Ki Dash	Ramayana	Sagaai	Paheli
Bharat Milap	Mirza Ghalib	Chandan Ka Palna	Karz
Vijay	Parivar	Jhuk Gaya Aasmaan