Biography

In India he worked together with Himansu Rai and whose wife Devika Rani and Franz Osten shot many Indian movies. Together with Himansu Rai he belonged to the co-founders of Bollywood which is a bigger industry today than Hollywood.

After his arrest by the English, he was released in 1940 indeed but had to return to Germany where he did not realise movies as a director. He worked as a personnel manager for the "Bavaria" which was emerged from the former production company "Emelka".

In 1936, while still living and directing in India, Osten joined Germany's Nazi Party.

Franz Osten was already contacted by the actor and director Himansu Rai in the middle of the 20s. Rai wanted to realize movies which broached the issue of the East for the West film industry, on the other hand he also wanted to launch an own film production industry in India. Franz Osten was stoked by the idea and he traveled to India in 1924 where he realized the movie "Prem Sanyas/Die Leuchte Asiens" (1925).

Very successful were his adaptions based on novels written by Ludwig Ganghofer.