IT IS APT TO DESCRIBE IT AS A MIRAGE, ONE DAY IT IS THERE AND THEN THE NEXT....MAGICALLY IT IS GONE AND LEAVES THAT SEMBLANCE OF MEMORIES OF WHICH WE DO FORGET AT TIMES.

BOLLYWOOD BEAUTIES THAT WE HAVE FORGOTTEN:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

Fame is fickle. Rekha, Sadhana, Nanda and Nimmi, who were the toast of Hindi cinema, are long forgotten now and they lead secluded lives in a city that once worshipped them. Others like Parveen Babi, Nadira and Suraiya died lonely and unloved.

Will revisits memory lane and take a peek of past beauties.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

ASHA PAREKH:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

Asha Parekh (2 October 1942) a Bollywood actress, director, and producer. She was one of the top stars in Hindi films from 1959 to 1973 and is said to have starred in more hit films than any other actress.

Asha Parekh was born into a middle-class Gujarati household on 2 October 1942 in Maharashtra, India to a Jain father and Muslim mother, and her religious upbringing involved worshiping Sai Baba. Since she was an only child, she became the centre of her parents' lives. Her mother enrolled her in Indian classical dance classes at an early age and Asha excelled at dancing to the point where she performed at stage shows and private functions.

Parekh started her career as a child artiste under the screen name Baby Asha Parekh in the film Aasmaan (1952). Famed film director Bimal Roy saw her dance at a stage function and cast her at the tender age of twelve in Baap Beti (1954). The film's failure disappointed her and even though she did a couple more child roles, she quit to resume her schooling. At sixteen she decided to try acting again and make her debut as a heroine, but she was rejected from Vijay Bhatt's Goonj Uthi Shehnai (1959) in favor of actress Ameeta, because the filmmaker claimed she was not star material. The very next day, film producer Subodh Mukherjee and writer-director Nasir Hussain cast her as the heroine in Dil Deke Dekho (1959) opposite Shammi Kapoor which made her a huge star overnight, success begun smiling on Asha.

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ASHA PAREKH:

The film also led to a long and fruitful association with Hussain. He went on to cast her as the heroine in six more of his films: Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai (1961), Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon (1963), Teesri Manzil (1966), Baharon Ke Sapne (1967), Pyar Ka Mausam (1969), and Caravan (1971). She also did a cameo role for his film Manzil Manzil (1984). He also got her involved in distribution of films for 21 years, starting with Baharon Ke Sapne (1967). She was primarily known as a glamour girl/excellent dancer/tomboy in most of her films, until director Raj Khosla gave her a serious image by casting her in tragedienne roles in three of her favorite films: Do Badan (1966), Chirag (1969), and Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki (1978). Director Shakti Samanta gave her more dramatic roles in her other favorite films, Pagla Kahin Ka (1970), and Kati Patang (1970), the latter earned her the Filmfare Best Actress Award. Many important directors repeated her several times in their films, such as Vijay Anand, Mohan Segal and J.P. Dutta.

Asha acted in her mother tongue Gujarati by starring in three films at the height of her fame in Hindi films, the first film being Akhand Saubhagyavati (1963), which became a huge hit. She also acted in some Punjabi films and a Kannada film

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ASHA PAREKH:

After her days as a leading lady ended, she took on supporting roles as bhabhi (sister-in-law) and mother, but she called this the "awkward phase" of her career. So she stopped acting in films, and her friends recommended that she become a television director. She took their advice and became a television director in the early 1990s with a Gujarati serial Jyoti. She formed a production company Akruti and produced serials like Palash ke Phool, Baaje Payal, Kora Kagaz and a comedy Dal Mein Kaala.] She was the president of the Cine Artistes' Association from 1994 to 2000. Asha was the first female chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification (Censor Board) of India. She held the post from 1998 to 2001 for which she received no salary but plenty of controversy for censoring films and for not giving clearance to Shekhar Kapur's Elizabeth. Later, she became the treasurer of the Cine and Television Artists Association (CINTAA) and also was later elected to be one of its officebearers.

Asha stopped acting in 1995 to pursue directing and producing television serials, but her acting accomplishments were not forgotten as she received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002. And she has continued to receive other Lifetime Achievement Awards: Kalakar Award in 2004; International Indian Film Academy Awards in 2006; Pune International Film Festival Award (2007); Ninth Annual Bollywood Award (2007) in Long Island, New York. She received the Living Legend Award from the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry(FICCI).

In 2008, she was seen judging dancers on a reality show Tyohaar Dhamaaka on the Indian entertainment channel 9X

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ASHA PAREKH:

Asha has remained unmarried, claiming that her reputation of being unapproachable made people hesitate in asking for her hand in marriage. There were rumors that she was romantically involved with her married director Nasir Hussain. In her later years, Asha said that she had a longtime boyfriend but declined to elaborate on the relationship, only stating that "it was nice while it lasted." She said she hadn't seen Nasir Hussain the last year of his life, as he became reclusive because of his wife's death, but she did speak to him on the phone the day before he died in 2002. A devastated Asha attended his funeral.

Today, she concentrates on her dance academy Kara Bhavan, which has produced many skilled dancers. The Asha Parekh Hospital in Santa Cruz, Mumbai is named after her because of her many contributions. Her considerable wealth provides for many of her social and charitable causes.

When asked if she missed having a husband and children, her response was: "I don’t think so. There was a time when I did want to get married. I used to love children, I still love children, but now I feel that I am happy I am not married and don’t have kids, because I don’t think I would have been able to cope up with them."

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

ASHA PAREKH:



AT 68 ASAHJI CAN STILL FIND THAT ILLUSIVE BOYFRIEND AND ENJOY SOME OF THAT MAGICAL BLISS OF SOMETHING CALLED 'MARRIAGE'

THAT FLASHES OF BEAUTY IS NO LONGER THERE AND HERE WE COME BACK TO OUR OPENING REMARKS:

IT IS APT TO DESCRIBE IT AS A MIRAGE, ONE DAY IT IS THERE AND THEN THE NEXT....MAGICALLY IT IS GONE AND LEAVES THAT SEMBLANCE OF MEMORIES OF WHICH WE DO FORGET AT TIMES.

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NEXT ON:

FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

NANDA:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

NANDA:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

NANDA:



Nanda (born 8 January 1939) is an actress of Hindi films. She comes from a show-business family. Her father, Vinayak Damodar Karnataki a.k.a Master Vinayak, was a successful Marathi actor-director in the 1930s and 1940s. He died when Nanda was just a child. The family faced hard times. She became a child artiste and helped out her family by working in films like Jaggu in the early 50’s. She was tutored at home by renowned school-teacher and Bombay Scouts Commissioner, Gokuldas V. Makhi.

Her paternal uncle V. Shantaram gave Baby Nanda ( her screen name then ) a big break by casting her in a successful brother-sister saga Toofan Aur Diya (1956). She received her first Filmfare Award nomination as Best Supporting Actress for "Bhabhi" (1957), but she claims that the reason she didn't win was because there was lobbying involved. She then played supporting roles like sister to stars like Dev Anand in Kala Bazaar, and did small roles in big films like Dhool Ka Phool.

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NANDA:



She played the title role in L.V. Prasad's Chhoti Bahen (1959) and the movie was a big hit, making her a star. She then played lead roles, such as one of Dev Anand’s heroines in Hum Dono (1961). She was the heroine in B R Chopra's Kanoon (1960), a film that was very unusual back then, because it had no songs. She won the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for "Anchal (film)" (1960).

She starred with Shashi Kapoor in a lot of films while he was a newcomer, but they were not successful. But they later had a super hit with Jab Jab Phool Khile (1965). In this film Nanda played a westernised role for the first time and it helped her image. Her favorite song that was famously picturized on her in the film was "Yeh Samaa." (Shashi Kapoor would later declare that Nanda was his favorite heroine.) She also had a second hit film in 1965 with Gumnaam, which helped put her in the top league of heroines. She would continue to play heroine roles throughout the 1960s and signed with new leading men, such as Rajesh Khanna in the songless suspense thriller Ittefaq (1969) for which she received a Filmfare nomination as Best Actress. After Khanna became a star, he signed two more films with her, the thriller The Train (Hindi film) (1969) and a comedy Joroo Ka Ghulam (1972).

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NANDA:


For Nanda, romance didn’t come when it was needed the most; and when it came, a stroke of bad luck never allowed her to make the most of it. Her affair with Manmohan Desai was shortlived as within two years after their engagement on June 18, 1992, Desai expired. “This phase was the shortest and the sweetest phase of my life. In this period I came to know what is love, in fact I learnt the reason to live. Though Manji and I never worked together, we fell in love with each other. “You are like a goddess and am very fortunate to have you in my life,” he had said, recalls Nanda adding, “We were supposed to get married. That was the time when my mother contracted Cancer and I being deeply attached to my mother was constantly besides her. Manji said, ‘I will not marry you now. If I do so, your love will get divided between your mother and me and that is what I don’t want,’ he had stressed. Nanda’s mother expired in 1993 while in the following year she lost Manji.

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NANDA:

MEN WHO MATTERED

Three people influenced Nanda the most

Dev Anand
In Kala Bazar, Nanda played sister to the then one of the three ‘muskeeters’ Dev Anand. Devsaab was impressed a lot of my performance and started treating her like family. “One day he came upto me and said, ” Nanda, one day I will play your hero. A year later Devsaab came to sign me as a heroine for his Hum Dono in which I played his seedhi saadhi wife. The role, the film and the music were well-received. One day at a party, he came up and said, ” Now you will have to play a modern girl in my film and incidentally the film was Teen Deviyan. I saw that Devsaab was a man of words. Later I found out that he was constantly gauging my talent. I have a lot of gratitude towards him,” she asserts.

Dilip Kumar
As a child, Nanda used to watch Dilip Kumar films like Kohinoor, Devdas etc and rave about him. “The first time I met Dilipsaab was at Bharat Bhushan’s party. I was a little shy and was afraid to go and meet him. As the party went on, at one time we came face to face with each other. As our eyes met, he said, ” You are Master Vinayak’s daughter. I wish you all the best.” I found him to be well-mannered, well-behaved and very courteous and till today, he hasn’t changed a bit. Both he and Sairaji take lot of care of me. In fact they are the ones whom I found besides me when I was in the midst of bad times.”

Raj Kapoor
Raj Kapoor knew Master Vinayak very well through his previous association. Rajji was making Boot Polish. It so happened that he was auditioning a lot of child artistes for the film, among whom besides Baby Naaz and Baby Tabbasum I was also present. After the screen test, he called me over, spoke high about my father and then lamented, “Sorry, I can’t take you in the film because in no way do you look like a beggar.”

“When I was at the twilight of my film career, I met Rajji at Yash Johar’s party at my best friend Waheeda Rehman’s house. He asked me why I was not doing any films. On my giving an excuse he immediately asked me whether I would work in his film. I thought he was joking and in the same vein said ‘Yes’. To my surpise on the second or third day after that, I got a call from Rajji. “According to me, you would fit the role of Chhoti Bahu in my film; would you do it” he asked. “Not before I read the script.” I answered. The next day I found Jainendra Jain with the script in my house. After going through the script I guessed that there were three scenes where I could score in and I did Prem Rog opposite Kulbhushan Kharbanda.

Among her co-stars Nanda treats Sunil Dutt and Rajendra Kumar as the people who played a vital role in her career. All the rest including Shashi Kapoor, Dharmendra and Manoj Kumar – all newcomers were good to her.”I have also worked with Rajesh Khanna, Jeetendra, Sanjay Khan and Sanjeev Kumar. But by the time I played my last role as a heroine I sensed a change of attitude in everybody and that is when I decided to leave films, ” sighs Nanda. In her life Nanda had few friends but the ones she had continue to be so and close. Among her best friends are Waheeda Rehman, Helen, Shammi, Asha Parekh, Sadhana besides Saira Banu. “All of us friends meet at regular intervals but it is only Sairaji’s house that I visit.”

AT 71 WE FEEL THAT NANDAJI CAN STILL HAVE THAT CUPID'S ARROW SHOT AT HER....WHO KNOWS 'TIS NEVER TOO OLD TO FALL IN LOVE.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

NANDA:

AT 71 IT IS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO GET A PICTURE OF NANDA......MAYBE IN THE NEAR FUTURE ONE WILL BE AVAILABLE.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

SADHNA:



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SADHNA:



Even Sadhana decided to retire from acting, saying she wanted her fans to remember her as a young, beautiful leading lady. The 1974 movie Geeta Mera Naam was her last outing as an actress and after that she was never seen in any public event.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

SADHNA:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

SADHNA:


Sadhana is a popular Bollywood actress. She was born 2 September 1941 in Karachi, Sindh, (British India) which was at that time part of India and since 1947 part of Pakistan. Her cousin is actress Babita, the daughter of actor Hari Shivdasani.

Sadhana was born in 1941 and named after her father's favorite actress Sadhana Bose, her father and Hari Shivdasani were biological brothers, so she is the cousin of actress Babita. She was an only child and her parents made her the center of their lives; in fact, her mother home schooled her until she was 8 years old. The family fled from Karachi in Pakistan during Post Partition riots. Although they encountered difficult times, their daughter was allowed to see as many as two films a week. When she was 15 years old, she was discovered by some producers who had seen her act in a college play, she is a post graduate in literature. They cast her in India's first Sindhi film titled Abana (1960), where she played the heroine's younger sister for which she was paid a token of Rps. 1. A photograph of her publicizing the film appeared in a movie magazine. Subodh Mukherjee, one of India's leading producers at that time, saw the magazine and gave her the lead role in her first Hindi film Love in Simla (1959), opposite his newcomer son, Joy Mukherjee. The film was directed by another newcomer, R.K. Nayyar, who created her trademark look called 'the Sadhana fringe.' It was modeled after Audrey Hepburn's hairstyle to cover up Sadhana's flaw, her broad forehead. The film became a great success and Sadhana became a overnight star. She also fell in love with the film's director, but she was only 16 years old, and her parents threatened the 22-year-old Nayyar with legal action if he didn't end his relationship. He became scared and backed away.

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SADHNA:



Hari helped Sadhana enter films. She was a chorus girl in Raj Kapoor's Shree 420 in 1955. She played a second lead in a Sindhi film called Abana (1958), which got her noticed and entry to an acting school. The school was run by film producer Sashadhar Mukherjee, and also had another aspiring actress named Asha Parekh as a student. When Mukherjee was casting Dil Deke Dekho (1959), he gave director Nasir Hussain a choice between Sadhana and Asha to play the heroine; Hussain chose Asha.

However, for his next project, Love in Simla (1960), Mukherjee again gave his director, R.K. Nayyar (Raj Kapoor's assistant) a say in who should play the heroine. Nayyar chose Sadhana, and she was paired with Mukherjee's own son Joy Mukherjee in the film. During the making of the film, Sadhana and director R.K. Nayyar fell in love, and married in 1965.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

SADHNA:



R.K. asked Sadhana to style her hair with a fringe (like Audrey Hepburn); this hairstyle later became a craze and is still referred to as the "Sadhana cut" in India.

Sadhana's film Mere Mehboob (1963) with Rajendra Kumar was one that helped make her career and is said to have some of her most beautiful closeups in early Technicolor. However, it was Raj Khosla's "Woh Kaun Thi?" (1964) which really became a landmark in her career and gave her the image of the "mystery girl," where her spellbinding performance kept everyone guessing to the very end. The film became a huge hit and earned her her first Filmfare nomination as Best Actress. Khosla was so enthralled with her performance that he would cast her in two more big-budget mystery films, Mera Saaya (1966) and Anita (1967). She would earn her second Filmfare nomination as Best Actress for the blockbuster Waqt (1965), where she set another fashion trend with her tight churidar kurtas.

In the late 1960s, a thyroid problem required taking a leave to go to Boston for treatment. She made a successful recovery, after her health scare, and continued to deliver hits like Inteqaam (1969), Ek Phool Do Mali (1969), and Geeta Mera Naam (1974), which she also directed. She then decided to retire from acting, saying that she wanted her fans to remember her as a young, beautiful leading lady. She and her husband formed a production company afterwards.

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SADHNA:



Sadhana married R.K. Nayyar in 1965, she was happily married to him for nearly thirty years, till his death in the late 1990s. She still lives in Mumbai meeting with many friends and family and keeping busy with her beautiful home and multiple projects.

Today, Sadhana meets regularly for lunch with other 1960's actresses: Asha Parekh, Nanda, Waheeda Rehman, and Helen.

On director Raj Khosla who directed her in the maximum number of films: "He had become a sort of family friend, and he knew my strengths and weaknesses as an actress. I felt comfortable working with him. We vibed well together."

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

SADHNA:



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SADHNA:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

PARVEEN BABI:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

PARVEEN BABI

Parveen Babi (April 4, 1949 - 20 January 2005) was an Indian actress, who is most remembered for her glamorous roles alongside top heroes of the 1970s and early 80s in blockbusters like Deewar, Namak Halaal, Amar Akbar Anthony and Shaan.

Babi was born in Junagadh. She did her early schooling in Aurangabad and later attended St. Xavier's College, Ahmedabad. Her father Vali Mohammed Babi, was an administrator with the Nawab of Junagadh. Babi was born fourteen years after the marriage of her parents and was the only child. She lost her parents at a very young age.

Parveen did not marry but shared intimate relationships with married men: director Mahesh Bhatt, actors Kabir Bedi, and Danny Denzongpa. Mahesh Bhatt later wrote and directed Arth (1982), a semi-autobiographical film about his extramarital relationship with Babi, and wrote and produced Woh Lamhe (2006) based on actual facts about his relationship with her.

Parveen was considered to be one of the most successful Bollywood actresses in the 1970s and was known for her portrayal of iconoclastic women who did not care about the conventional norms of society. She made her film debut with film, Charitira, in 1973 while still in college.

She was the first Indian actress to have been featured on TIME magazine's cover, in March 1977. In her most successful films, she was paired opposite Amitabh Bachchan, who was one of the biggest stars of the decade, in cinematic blockbusters like Deewaar (1975) Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), Shaan (1980), Kaalia (1981), and Khud-daar (1982).


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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

PARVEEN BABI



She was often compared with her contemporary Zeenat Aman due to their common image of being sex-symbols. In fact, she acted alongside Zeenat in Mahaan (1983) and Ashanti (1982) (inspired by the American television show Charlie's Angels, with the third role played by Shabana Azmi). In films like Deewar (1975), Shaan (1980) and Namak Halaal (1982) her screen presence may have been minimal (the films largely working around the hero) but Babi brought a certain attractive aloofness to the roles and songs she appeared in. In Manoj Kumar's big hit Kranti (1981), she stole scenes with her supporting role from Hema Malini, the heroine of the film. Babi also acted in offbeat films like Vinod Pandey's Yeh Nazdeekiyan (1982).

Her success did not run into the mid-eighties as she had left the film industry to move to New York in 1983. Many of her completed films released in the following years right uptill her last film Aakarshan releasing in 1988.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

PARVEEN BABI



After rumours about Babi suffering from schizophrenia began making rounds, she sought mental solace through alternative contemporary spirituality. She followed "Osho" for a few years and later became involved with the teachings of U.G.Krishnamurti in New York. She returned to Mumbai in 1992 where she was unrecognizable as her former self after having put on a considerable amount of weight. She accused many foreign dignitaries including Bill Clinton and her former co-star, Amitabh Bachchan, of conspiring to kill her but her petition in court was dismissed for lack of evidence. In 2002, she again hit the headlines when she filed an affidavit in the special court hearing the 1993 serial bomb blasts case, claiming that she had gathered clinching evidence against actor Sanjay Dutt showing his involvement in the case, but she did not turn up in court after being summoned saying that she was afraid of being killed.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

PARVEEN BABI



It was speculated that Parveen Babi suffered from schizophrenia and had become a recluse due to her paranoia. Some claimed it was the release of Mahesh Bhatt’s Arth (a semi-autobiographical look at his extramarital relationship with Parveen) and her disturbed state of mind that prompted her to abandon everything. She led the life of an absolute recluse because she was afraid people were trying to kill her. She was also afraid of doorbells and phone calls. It is also said that whenever a journalist or a friend visited her over meals, she would ask them to eat the food of her plate first, so as to convince herself that her food was not poisoned by anyone. It is also probable that she was not schizophrenic but had a Delusional Disorder DSM-IV TR and withdrew from society. It is probable that her mental disorder could be Substance-Induced Psychosis, as she allegedly took LSD and other hallucinogens with her lovers Mahesh Bhatt - in addition to drinking heavily and also consuming marijuana. The move to New York was in order to obtain confidential psychiatric treatment, or perhaps partially motivated by the initial psychotic break - as she did not trust psychiatrists in India to keep her information confidential.

In April, 1984 a disturbed and distraught Parveen Babi landed in the New York International Airport. She was asked to show her identification papers by the Airport authorities. Something in her snapped. She is said to have acted difficult and was handcuffed. When she put up a frantic struggle, she was also ankle-cuffed and carried by four policemen to a public hospital. An Indian doctor recognized Parveen and came to her aid. When U.G.Krishnamurti landed in New York, he found Parveen in a general ward with thirty other mentally disturbed patients.

However, she managed to maintain her posh penthouse apartment in Mumbai and live affluently from sound financial investments. She was diabetic for most of her life - possibly due to the side-effects of powerful anti-psychotic medications.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

PARVEEN BABI



PARVEEN LAST DAYS:

She was found dead in her Mumbai apartment on 22 January 2005 after her residential society secretary alerted the police that she had not collected milk and newspapers from her doorstep for three days. The Police suspected that she might have died three days back, though the cause of her death was not immediately known. She was found to have gangrene of the foot as a complication of her diabetic condition. The police ruled out any foul play. Later it was said that the cause of death appeared to be complications from diabetes.

After her death, her body was taken to a Hospital, where it lay unclaimed till evening. Soon after, filmmakers Mahesh Bhatt and Ashok Pandit offered to perform the last rites if there was no claimant. Her burial was conducted according to Islamic rites and Babi was buried next to her mother at Santa Cruz, in Mumbai on 23 January 2005



INDEED A VERY SAD END FOR A BEAUTIFUL WOMAN: MAKES ME REMEMBER MEENA KUMARI

SOME TIME IN THE FUTURE I WILL DO AN INDEPTH THREAD ON PARVEEN BABI

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

PARVEEN BABI

THE MOVIES OF PARVEEN BABI:

Charitra (1973)
Charitraheen (1974)
Dhuen Ki Lakeer (1974)
36 Ghante (1974)
Trimurti (1974 Film) (1974)
Majboor (1974)
Kala Sona (1975)
Deewaar (1975)
Bullet (Film) (1976)
Bhanwar (1976)
Rangeela Ratan (1976)
Mazdoor Zindabad (1977)
Maama Bhanja (1977)
Amar Akbar Anthony (1977)
Mastaan Dada (1978)
Chandi Sona (1977)
Darinda (1977) (1977)
Chalta Purza (1977)
Chor Sipahee (1977)
Aahuti (1978 film) (1978)
Pati Patni Aur Woh (1978)
Kaala Patthar (1979)
Suhaag (1979 film) (1979)
Shaan (1980)
Ek Gunaah Aur Sahi (1980)
Do Aur Do Paanch (1980)
The Burning Train (1979)
Ashanti (1981)
Meri Aawaaz Suno (1981)
Ameer Aadmi Ghreeb Aadmi (1981)
Kaalia (1981)
Raksha (1981)
Kranti (1981)
Gunahgaar (1980)
Mangal Pandey (1982)
Desh Premee (1982)
Dil Aakhir Dil Hai (1982)
Bad Aur Badnaam (1982)
Taaqat (1982)
Yeh Nazdeekiyan (1982)
Namak Halaal (1982)
Khud-daar (1982)
Jaani Dost (1983)
Razia Sultan (1983)
Chor Police (1983)
Kanoon Meri Muthi Mein (1983)
Mahaan (1983)
Rang Birangi (1983)
Arpan (1983)
Sitamgar (1985)
Telephone (1985)
Bond 303 (1986)
Avinaash (1987)
Aakarshan (1988)

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

MALA SINHA:



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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

MALA SINHA:



Mala Sinha (born 11 November 1936) is an Indian actress of Nepalese ethnicity. She became one of the most popular female stars in Bollywood films from the fifties to the early seventies, starring in numerous blockbusters and hits.

Sinha was born to Albert Sinha, in a Nepalese Christian family. They named her Alda. Her friends at school used to tease her calling Dalda (a branded vegetable oil of India), so she changed her name to Mala.

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MALA SINHA:



Sinha started her film career as child artist in Bengali Films Jai Vaishno Devi followed by Shri Krishan Leela, Jog Biyog & Dhooli. Noted Bengali film director Ardhendu Bose saw her acting in a school play and took permission from her father to cast her as a heroine in his film Roshanara (1952), her cinematic debut.

After acting in a couple of films in Calcutta, Mala had to go to Bombay to shoot for a Bengali film. There she met Geeta Dutt, a noted Bollywood playback singer, who was charmed by her and introduced her to film director Kidar Sharma. It was Sharma who cast her as a heroine in his film Rangeen Ratein. However, her first Hindi film was Badshah opposite Pradeep Kumar, than came Ekadashia mythological film both films failed, but her lead role in Kishore Sahu's Hamlet fetched her rave reviews in spite of the film failing at the boxoffice.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

MALA SINHA:



Mala was also a singer of some repute and used to sing for All India Radio, albeit she was never allowed to sing playback (even for herself) in the movies. In 1957, noted Bollywood actor and film director Guru Dutt (the husband of Geeta Dutt) cast Mala in his film Pyaasa in a role originally intended for Madhubala. Mala gave a memorable performance as the woman who chooses to marry a rich man (played by character artiste Rehman) rather than a poor unsuccessful poet (played by Guru Dutt himself). The film remains to this day a classic in the history of Indian cinema and a turning point for Sinha.

After Pyaasa her major success was Yash Chopra's directorail debut Dhool Ka Phool(1959) that elevated her into a major dramatic star, there was no looking back for Sinha than as she gave hits after hits in movies like 'Parvarish', 'Phir Subah Hogi', 'Main Nahse Main Hoon', 'Love Marriage', 'Bahurani', 'Anpadh', 'Aasra', 'Dil Tera Deewana', Gumrah (many critics believe her career best performance), 'Aankhen', 'Hariyali Aur Rasta', 'Himalaya Ki God Mein' and many more. What was most remarkable about Mala Sinha was that most of her 1960s hits were fuelled by her own star power as much as the heroes'. She did not mind working with newcomers as long as her role was worth. When she acted opposite big stars, she made sure her role was as good as theirs. She worked with many newcomers of her era including Dharmendra, Sunil Dutt, Sanjay Khan and Amitabh Bachchan. In most of her films she got the first billing in the credits, even before the heroes.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

MALA SINHA:



In 1966, Sinha went to Nepal to act in a Nepali film called "Maitighar" when the Nepali film industry was still in its infancy. Her hero in the film was an estate owner called C. P. Lohani[4]. Soon after, Mala Sinha married C. P. Lohani with the blessings of her parents. From the beginning theirs was a long-distance marriage with Lohani based in Kathmandu to look after his business and she living in Bombay with their daughter Pratibha. Mala continued acting in films after her marriage.

She has been a heroine in Nepali and Bengali films. In Bengali films she has acted with Uttam Kumar as well as Kishor Kumar. Her last Bengali film was Kabita(1977) which featured Ranjit Mullick and Kamal Hassan. She is noted for her strong women oriented yet glamorous roles fuelled by her equal star power on par with the heroes giving blockbusters and hits like Dhool Ka Phool, Anpadh, Phir Subah Hogi, Hariyali Aur Rasta, Dil Tera Deewana, Bahurani, Aasra, Do Kaliyan, Gumrah, Aankhen, Himalaya Ki God Mein, Maryada amongst others.

As she grew older she gracefully moved on to doing character roles that befitted her age. She was last seen in Zid(1994). Though Mala evinced as much interest in her daughter Pratibha's career as her father did in her career, she was unable to achieve the same success for her daughter.

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FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

MALA SINHA:


BISWAJEET AND MALA SINHA:
MALA SINHA IS NOW 73 YEARS OLD

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quote:

Originally posted by asj:
FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

ASHA PAREKH:

The film also led to a long and fruitful association with Hussain. He went on to cast her as the heroine in six more of his films: Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai (1961), Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon (1963), Teesri Manzil (1966), Baharon Ke Sapne (1967), Pyar Ka Mausam (1969), and Caravan (1971). She also did a cameo role for his film Manzil Manzil (1984). He also got her involved in distribution of films for 21 years, starting with Baharon Ke Sapne (1967). She was primarily known as a glamour girl/excellent dancer/tomboy in most of her films, until director Raj Khosla gave her a serious image by casting her in tragedienne roles in three of her favorite films: Do Badan (1966), Chirag (1969), and Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki (1978). Director Shakti Samanta gave her more dramatic roles in her other favorite films, Pagla Kahin Ka (1970), and Kati Patang (1970), the latter earned her the Filmfare Best Actress Award. Many important directors repeated her several times in their films, such as Vijay Anand, Mohan Segal and J.P. Dutta.

Asha acted in her mother tongue Gujarati by starring in three films at the height of her fame in Hindi films, the first film being Akhand Saubhagyavati (1963), which became a huge hit. She also acted in some Punjabi films and a Kannada film

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Asj...great topic...hey I liked her in Pyar Ka Mausam..Teesri Manzil n Kati Patang...great songs in those movies too..

i might not post too much but i still find some time to read

quote:

Originally posted by asj:
FORGOTTEN BEAUTIES:

SADHNA:



Even Sadhana decided to retire from acting, saying she wanted her fans to remember her as a young, beautiful leading lady. The 1974 movie Geeta Mera Naam was her last outing as an actress and after that she was never seen in any public event.

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loved her in Geeta mera Naam...read about the hairstyle..that was something else