Before Deepika Padukone, Indian Actor Sabu Dastagir Received Star ... Before Deepika Padukone, Indian Actor Sabu Dastagir Received Star ...

Before Deepika Padukone, Sabu Dastagir was the primary Indian actor to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame

Jul 03, 2025 02:34 PM IST

Deepika Padukone isn’t the primary Indian actor to obtain an upcoming star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. That honour falls upon Sabu Dastagir

A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is among the most prestigious honours a performer can obtain — a everlasting image of success embedded in Hollywood Boulevard, surrounded by legends. So, when it was introduced that Indian actor Deepika Padukone can be awarded a star on the Walk of Fame in 2026 within the Motion Pictures class, it felt like a private win for a lot of and followers rapidly dubbed her the primary Indian to ever obtain the honour. But that’s not completely true.

Sabu Dastagir and Deepika Padukone aspect by aspect

While Deepika’s achievement is historic in some ways, she isn’t the primary Indian to be immortalised on Hollywood Boulevard. That honour goes to a forgotten icon of traditional cinema: Sabu Dastagir, a Mysore-born actor who made his Hollywood debut within the Nineteen Thirties and went on to change into a sensation.

Who was Sabu Dastagir?

Sabu was inducted into the Walk of Fame in Hollywood’s golden age in 1960, a full six a long time earlier than Deepika’s title can be introduced. Born in 1924 to a mahout household (elephant trainers), Sabu’s journey to Hollywood was nothing in need of cinematic itself.

Sabu Dastagir in Mowgli, impressed by The Jungle Book He was allegedly found by American filmmaker Robert Flaherty, who solid him within the 1937 British movie Elephant Boy, primarily based on creator Rudyard Kipling’s Toomai of the Elephants. With his pure display screen presence, Sabu rapidly grew to become a staple of Hollywood’s fantasy-adventure style, starring in movies like The Drum (1938), The Thief of Bagdad (1940) and Arabian Nights (1942).

Sabu’s star within the Hollywood Walk of Fame By the early Nineteen Forties, Sabu was some of the recognisable non-white faces in Western cinema, carving an area for himself lengthy earlier than range grew to become a buzzword. He grew to become an American citizen in 1944 and even served within the U.S. Army throughout World War II. However, post-war, Sabu’s profession started to stall. Roles dried up. He moved to Europe, starring in lesser-known movies. In 1957, he was reportedly in talks to star in Mother India, however was unable to safe a piece allow. The function went to Sunil Dutt. He died tragically younger within the early Nineteen Sixties, on the age of 39, from a coronary heart assault, his legacy quietly buried in a Hollywood that had moved on.

Netizens have been followers of the icon for years, with tributes pouring in on his birthday and loss of life anniversary.

Now, as Deepika rightfully takes her place among the many international greats, it’s value taking a second to recollect the younger Indian actor who got here earlier than her — wide-eyed and able to conquer the silver display screen with nothing however allure.

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