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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 943

A Throw of Dice

Synopsis

Two kings desire Sunita, the daughter of a hermit, and bring their rivalry into a game of dice. She favors Ranjit, but his appetite for gambling gives his opponent a way to control the outcome. A contest presented as a matter of chance becomes a struggle over freedom, deception and the woman's choice of whom to marry.

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Video edition
Wikimedia Commons
Original language
No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: not identified.
This copy runs
76:15
Subtitles
No subtitle track in this language

No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: not identified. No subtitle track in this language.

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Wikimedia Commons · Franz Osten · Public domain

Cast

DirectorsFranz Osten

Behind the scenes

The film completed a sequence of Indian productions made through the partnership of Franz Osten and Himanshu Rai. Location filming and large ceremonial scenes place the intimate romantic contest within an expansive view of royal life.

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 12, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

  • Seeta Devi — Anonymous Unknown author; http://www.im-export.net/downloads/06b_Die_Leuchte_Asiens_Franz_Osten.jpg · Public domain
  • Himanshu Rai — Unknown author Unknown author; FilmIndia June 1940, page 15 · Public domain
  • Charu Roy — Anonymous Unknown author; https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/15/movies/homevideo/15dvds.html?_r=1&oref=slogin · Public domain

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