The First Kiss in Hindi Cinema: Devika Rani and Himanshu Rai’s Iconic 4-Minute Kiss

The First Kiss in Hindi Cinema: Devika Rani and Himanshu Rai’s Iconic 4-Minute Scene in the 1933 Film Karma

The first kissing scene in Hindi talkies was sealed with a kiss nearly 90 years ago in the film Karma, which was released in 1933. Karma was among the first Hindi films to feature a kissing scene. Hindi film stars Devika Rani and Himanshu Rai were the pioneers who introduced the kissing scene to the Hindi film industry.

Devika Rani was considered the first lady of Indian cinema. The kiss in Karma was also the longest one ever recorded on Indian celluloid. The scene was not too intense — it was, in fact, quite a one-sided kiss. Devika Rani kisses the hero, played by her real-life husband Himanshu Rai, in the hope of reviving him from unconsciousness after a snake bite.

This scene lasted for about four minutes and is still remembered as the longest kiss in Hindi cinema history. For the stunned audience of that era, it must have seemed like an eternity. Remarkably, the record for the longest kissing scene in Indian cinema remained unbroken until 2014.

In the 1930s, Himanshu Rai and Devika Rani performed what was then unimaginable — a lip-lock scene for their film Karma. Even today, kissing scenes can stir controversy, so imagine one being filmed in the 1930s. On-screen kissing occurred at a time when Indian cinema was hesitant to portray intimate or suggestive scenes.

Yet, one of the earliest kisses ever shown on screen, the Karma kiss, was a bold and groundbreaking moment — a daring, almost shocking scene that marked a new chapter in the history of Hindi cinema.