धर्मात्मा — संत एकनाथ परदे पर

Prabhat and V. Shantaram's Dharmatma (1935) — the saint film of Sant Eknath, in which stage legend Bal Gandharva played the saint, and the abhang tradition of bhakti reached the screen with an anti-untouchability reformist message.

Prabhat Film Company's Dharmatma (1935) tells the story of the sixteenth-century Marathi poet-saint Eknath, who composed numerous abhangs in devotion to Vithoba and raised his voice against untouchability. Directed by V. Shantaram and written by K. Narayan Kale, this bilingual Marathi-Hindi film carried the saint's word onto the new screen of cinema.

The Marathi stage legend Bal Gandharva — born Narayan Shripad Rajhans — was famed all his life for female roles, in an age when women were barred from the stage. In Dharmatma he played the leading male role of Sant Eknath, an extraordinary departure in his career. Chandra Mohan played the opposing Mahant, who has Eknath ex-communicated.

The music was composed by Master Krishnarao (Krishnarao Phulambrikar) and the lyrics written by Narottam Vyas. At the story's heart is the scene where Eknath feeds untouchables before the Brahmins — a bold message of equality and humanity. Thus the abhang tradition of bhakti, carrying a reformist note, rang through the early years of Hindi cinema.