SD Narang, who helmed Bengal National Studio, hailed from Lahore. An extremely meritorious student, he had secured a Phd in medical research after getting a degree in medicine. Instead of continuing with that, Narang got smitten by the film bug. He was cast as the lead in Khajanchi (1941). That was the film shot in Lahore’s famous Panchali Studio. It was also the first Hindi film to celebrate its golden jubilee. After acting in a few films, Narang wanted to dabble in production. He established the Upper India Studio in Lahore. Partition woes shattered his dreams. Narang crossed the border and migrated to Kolkata. He opened his office at Chowringhee’s Leslie House. He took the lease of the defunct Debdatta Studio in Baranagar and named it Bengal National Studio. Work started around the end of 1946. Both Bengali and Hindi films were shot here. Ek Aurat (1948), Lottery (1949), Nayi Bhabhi (1950) were some of the notable Hindi films. Notable among its Bengali productions is Chattagram Astragar Lunthan (1949).
Despite having dreams in his eyes, his Kolkata stint too was short-lived. Many swindled him and soon he was plagued with a big financial crisis. Finally, he left Kolkata to settle in Bombay and produced films like Yahudi Ki Ladki (1957), Dilli Ka Thag (1958), Shehnai (1964) and College Girls (1978). Bengal National Studio soon folded up. The studio’s land later became a part of Baranagar’s Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) [Refer to Debdutta Studio].