Towards the end of the great  war, feature film production started in Bengal. The
female roles were played by men to start with and later, women joined the stage
and films. These women were either Anglo-Indians, who took up the profession
willingly or else they were brought from the red light areas of Calcutta. Film
acting being considered undignified, womenfolk  from respectable families would
not dream of acting in public (although plays were staged by advanced families
for selected audiences, notably the Tagore family).  Film makers depended
heavily on the nautch girls to do the female roles. Men like Dhirendranath
Ganguly (D.G. as he was better known ) and Dada Saheb Phalke of course got
their wives and daughters to act in films). KANAN’s roots were also outside the
society. It is now proved that her first record was published from HMV. Who
exactly groomed her in those days is  something that we will probably never
know, but some researchers have named Ascharmoyee Dassi for her earliest
songs. There was also one Bholada –a well wisher who taught  KANAN many
songs. KANAN’s training from Allah Rakha happened at a later date when she
was capable of appoining a teacher at her own expense.  However, contrary to
popular belief this Allah Rakha was not any famous ustaad from Lucknow, but an
unknown music teacher from Calcutta.
KANAN was brought to films by Shri Tulsi Banerjee, her first film being JOYDEB
(1926) as a child artiste. She next appeared in SHANKARACHARYA (1927), but
in such a small role that she went uncredited. Her next film appearance was in
the talkie JORE BARAT (1931). She could not afford to be idle for all these four
or five years.
 
Her musical talents were discovered from the notorious Gholadanga area of
Howrah by someone whose exact identity can never be known today, but Hiren
Bose can perhaps be credited as her first real trainer. After shifting between
HMV, Columbia and Megaphone for a while, she was finally given shelter at
Megaphone by Shri J.N. Ghosh, the only person in the film and music world
whom she called BABA (meaning father). She was given a separate room for
living and singing and here maestros like Kaji Najrul Islam, Vishmabeb
Chattopadhyay, Gyan Datta and Binode Behari Ganguly became her regular
trainers. Music lessons apart,  Shri J.N.Ghosh engaged a teacher, Mrs Gabbey
for KANAN to learn English. She started recording discs right from the beginning

of Megaphone Company and in fact the fifth record (JNG 5) published by the
company had KANAN’S songs.
 
In 1931, she played the lead in JORE BARAT, and A  STAR WAS BORN, a star
who came to dominate over the Indian screen for the next three decades.
Success trickled in gradually and the indifference of the industry –after all she
was merely a film actress – gave way to delight, surprise ,astonishment and
respect as her value was established  beyond doubt . KANAN  was the first of all
our screen ladies to be addressed as MADAM by fellow workers in the studio.
 
Yet, it was not easy for her to be part of mainstream of the society. People

would admire her acting, would sing her songs, would follow the 
fashion trends set by her but would never dream of inviting her at .
social meets . No  “respectable man” would dream of having her as
life partner. Through hard labour, confidence and determination to
overcome the odds at all costs she earned for herself a position in
society where even the governor of a state
(Mr Dharma Vira of West Bengal) rose from his seat to welcome
her at a function……..