V. Shantaram was born on November 18, 1901 in the princely state of Kolhapur, presently known as Maharashtra. He was a renowned filmmaker and actor of Indian cinema. He started his film career by doing odd jobs in a film company at Kolhapur. He debuted in 1921 in the silent movie, Surekha Haran. For six decades he had an illustrious career as a filmmaker of Marathi and Hindi cinema.
In 1985, Shantaram was awarded the Indian film industry's highest award, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, and the Padma Vibhushan in 1992. He was the founder of Rajkamal Studios. He died on October 30, 1990, in Mumbai.