Ms Vijaya Mehta has earned national distinction in which of the following artistic or cultural fields?

Introduction / Context:
Vijaya Mehta is a prominent Indian cultural figure. Many competitive exams include questions on noted personalities from theatre, music, dance, and cinema. This item checks whether you can correctly associate Vijaya Mehta with the artistic field in which she made her greatest contribution and earned national recognition.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The question asks about the field in which Ms Vijaya Mehta has earned distinction.
• Options are theatre, journalism, classical dance, and film direction.
• We assume general awareness of Indian performing arts and their leading figures.

Concept / Approach:
To solve personality-field questions, link the name to the domain most strongly associated with their achievements. Vijaya Mehta is best known as a theatre director and actor, especially in Marathi theatre. She has directed influential plays and contributed to the modern Indian theatre movement, even though she has also been connected to cinema. Her primary and defining field, however, remains theatre.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Recall that Vijaya Mehta is a noted figure in Indian performing arts. Step 2: Associate her name with Marathi theatre, where she worked as an actor, director, and producer. Step 3: Compare the options with this knowledge. “Theatre” quickly stands out as the correct domain. Step 4: Recognise that journalism and classical dance are unrelated to her primary legacy. Step 5: Although she has directed films, her core contribution and fame arise from her work in theatre, so “Theatre” is the best and most accurate choice.

Verification / Alternative check:
Standard references on Indian theatre history or award lists for stage artists mention Vijaya Mehta as a pioneering theatre personality. She is often cited alongside other major theatre directors and has been honoured with awards for stage work. While she has had some connection with films, her identity in exam-oriented GK summaries is consistently as a theatre personality, not as a journalist or classical dancer.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Journalism: There is no prominent record of Vijaya Mehta as a journalist; this option distracts those who guess without clear recall. Classical dance: She is not typically associated with any classical dance form such as Bharatanatyam, Kathak, or Odissi. Film direction: Although she did contribute to cinema, the question is about the field of “distinction”, and that recognition overwhelmingly relates to her theatre work.

Common Pitfalls:
A common mistake is to pick “Film direction” because students may have seen her name in film credits. Another pitfall is confusing her with other cultural personalities whose primary identity is in classical dance or journalism. To handle such questions reliably, build a small mental map of Indian cultural figures grouped by domain—who is known for theatre, who for cinema, who for music, and so on—so that you can quickly match names to fields in the exam hall.

Final Answer:
Ms Vijaya Mehta has earned national distinction primarily in the field of Theatre.