Sabu, India’s First Bollywood Star, Gets A Biopic

Almighty Motion Picture has acquired the film and television rights to ‘Sabu: The Remarkable Story of India’s First Actor In Hollywood’ –the biography of Sabu Dastagir.

Millennials knew him as the Abu in ‘Thief of Baghdad’ (1940), Mowgli in the 1942 screen adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s ‘The Jungle Book’, as The Young General in ‘Black Narcissus’ (1947) and as Toomai in his debut Hollywood film ‘Elephant Boy’ (1937).

He was the confident, short yet wiry, knicker-wearing, dark-skinned boy with shoulder-length silky black hair. And would occasionally trade his shorts for a princely turbaned outfit by the end of the films when he’d rise above the challenges he’s faced.

Sabu first venture into the screen was at age 13 when he was discovered by documentary filmmaker Robert J. Flaherty to star in the British Adventure film ‘Elephant Boy’. Flaherty produced some of the Indian footage for the film, which featured Sabu, while Supervising Director, Zoltan Korda completed the film, which went on to win the Best Director Award at the Venice Film Festival.

Written by author Debleena Majumdar, the biography chronicles the true story of Sabu, who rose from the elephant stables in Mysore, Karapura, India, to become an international movie star.

The son of a mahout (elephant handler), Sabu’s journey from colonial India to the Hollywood Walk of Fame reads like a forgotten epic of fame, war, identity and legacy. His story, Variety online entertainment news report writes, “spans continents, cultures and eras – from his breakout role in ‘Elephant Boy’ to his service as a decorated air gunner in World War II.

He went on to star in Hollywood classics such as ‘The Thief of Baghdad’ (1940), ‘Jungle Book’ (1942), ‘Arabian Nights’ and ‘Black Narcissus’ (1947), becoming a box office sensation and cultural bridge between East and West. His contributions to cinema were recognized with his induction into the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960.

“Sabu’s story deserves to be told with grandeur and truth,” said Producer at Almighty Motion Picture Prabhleen Sandhu. “He wasn’t just India’s first global star. To bring his story to the screen is more than filmmaking, it’s preserving a legacy the world must never forget and is a responsibility we hold close to our hearts.”

The project is being developed as a high budget feature film and/or premium web series marking the actor’s journey through colonial India, wartime Europe and golden-era Hollywood.

Born January 27, 1924, Sabu was married to Marilyn Cooper, both died in 1963, and had two children, actress, Jasmine Sabu (died in 2001) and musician, Paul Sabu.