The Most Exploited & Unlucky Woman-Meena Kumari

 

Veteran journalist Vinod Mehta wrote the biography of Meena Kumari in 1972. In this book, he wrote about the exploitation of Meena Kumari whoever came close to her. She was first exploited by her family. She started out as Baby Meena, a child artist and a breadwinner of the family. As a child, she wasn't interested in a film career, and would rather attend school. In spite of this, her parents started peddling four-year-old Mahjabeen(Real Name of Meena Kumari) to film studios for work opportunities so she was deprived of her childhood.

One of the major blows in Meena Kumari's life was the death of her mother. She was only 14 then. In the film Industry also she struggled initially, though she was getting work but paid poorly.It was only after Baiju Bawra in 1952 she got recognition.
On May 21, 1951, Meena Kumari was involved in a motor car accident while returning from Mahabaleshwar to Bombay. She was admitted to Sasoon Hospital in Poona, injured around the left hand. Kumari went through bouts of depression.This accident left Meena Kumari with a banded left pinky which remained banded throughout her life, and she used to cover her left hand with a dupatta or saree during shoots. During this time Kamal Amrohi used to visit her in the hospital. For four months this hospital affair continued and love blossomed.

She married at the age of 18 Kamal Amrohi at that time he was 34. It was his third marriage. After their marriage, Kamal Amrohi allowed Meena Kumari to continue her acting career, but on the condition that she should not remit anyone in her makeup room but her makeup artist and return home in her own car by 6:30 every evening. Meena Kumari agreed to all terms, but with passing time she kept breaking them.
Meena Kumari was a patient with chronic insomnia and was on sleeping pills for a long time.As an alternative to sleeping pills, she started drinking. She was interested in Urdu poetry, this brought her close to another poet Gulzar. Once she was slapped on the set of  Pinjre ke Panchhi,by Kamal Amrohi's assistant, Baqar when she allowed Gulzar to enter her makeup room. After this incident in 1964, they divorced.

Dharmendra was the next person in her life. He signed Purnima as her Hero, he was a fan of Meena kumari,it was his dream to act opposite Meenaji. When he was introduced to her, she was warm and friendly and welcomed him with kind encouragement. Coincidentally, at this particular moment of her life, Meena Kumari required a stable and devoted man: big and strong, someone on whom she could literally rest her head, and someone who was not too famous. 

Dharmendra was almost a daily visitor at Janki Kutir. Together they would open a bottle and spend a few hours. These were the good times. Meena Kumari insisted her Producers to take Dharmendra as his Hero, both of them worked in 7 films. Dharmendra established himself as a hero because of Meena Kumari. However, a much younger and already married Dharmendra had nothing to offer in terms of the love and security Meena was searching for. They were intimate for three years.
Meena Kumari had a strong love for children, she wanted her own child here too she was deprived by her husband Kamal Amrohi.

She died on 31st March 1972, On a Good Friday, Meena Kumari died, after a long and painful battle with cirrhosis of the liver. She had been admitted to St Elizabeth’s Nursing Home in Bombay on 28th March and died three days later surrounded by the people who had played an important part in her life, both personal and professional. Her sisters Khursheed and Madhu; her estranged husband Kamal Amrohi; and various luminaries of the film world, including Begum Para and Kammo, from whose house the Aab-e-Zamzam (holy water from Mecca) was fetched to be spooned into Meena Kumari’s mouth as she was dying.

Song from Baiju Bawra 1952

Song of Tamasha 1952

Song from Azaad 1955

Song from Yahudi 1958

Song from Dil Apna Preet Parai, 1960

do sitaron ka milan hai aaj ki raat from kohinoor

Song from Bhabhi Ki Chudiyan 1961

Song of Aarti (1962)

Song of  Dil Ek Mandir (1963)

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Nanda- The Journey of Baby Nanda to the Leading Actress

 

Nanda(8 January 1939 – 25 March 2014) started her career in films as a child artist. It was her father who took her in his film Mandir (1948). While making the film her father expired, the film was completed by Dinakar Patil. After her father's untimely death, she decided to do films besides attending the school. First, she did Jaggu (1952) as a child artist in which Shyama was playing the heroine. In 1954 she did Jagadguru Shankaracharya. In the same year, she did Angaray directed by K.B. Lal that starred Nargis and Nasir Khan 

V Shantaram was her uncle, who gave her break as a leading actress in the 1956 film 'Toofan Aur Diya'. She played the role of sister in this film. After that, she was offered roles of sister or side roles in many films. Kala Bazar was one such film in which she played the role of a sister of the hero Dev Anand.

Bhabhi(1957) was a significant film for her, she was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress for this film. In this film also she played the role of a sister. Again in 1958, she played the sister of the hero Raj Kumar in Dulhan. She once again plays sister in 1959 film 'Chhoti Behan', recall the immortal 'Rakhi' song "Bhaiya Mere Rakhi Ke Bandhan Ko Nibhana".

In 'Dhool Ka Phool'(1959), she was the second lead actress to Mala Sinha, she didn't play the sister here but was not the leading actress. She won the Best Supporting Actress award for the 1960 film 'Aanchal'. In 1961 she was taken as one of the leading actresses for Dev Anand in Hum Dono, the success of this film made her a leading actress. She became the heroine of Shashi Kapoor in 'Char Diwari', Raj Kapoor in 'Aashiq'(1962), Sunil Dutt in 'Nartaki' and 'Aaj Aur Kal'.

Her most remarkable year was 1965 when 6 of her films as leading actress released. Teen Deviyan.Gumnam and Jab Jab Phool Khile were memorable.

In 'Jab Jab Phool Khile', Nanda played her career's first westernized role and paired up with Shashi Kapoor with whom she went on to do eight films. She worked with Rajesh Khanna in 'The Train' when he was just starting out as an actor. She also worked with him in 'Ittefaq' and 'Joru Ka Gulam'.
Manoj Kumar took her in Shor released in 1972. She made a brief return to acting in 1982 as a character actress where she played the onscreen mother of Padmini Kolhapure in 'Ahista Ahista', 'Mazdoor' R K Films Prem Rog 

'Mazdoor' (1983) was her last film, she played the wife of Dilip Kumar in this film. She died in Mumbai on 25 March 2014 at her Versova residence, aged 75, following a heart attack.

Song of Toofan aur Diya 1956

Song of Chhoti Bahen 1959

Song of Usne Kaha Tha 1960

Song of Hum Dono 1961

Song of  Aaj Aur Kal 1964

Song of  Jab Jab Phool Khile 1965

Song of Teen Deviyan 1965

Song of Gumnaam 1965

Song of The Train 1970

Song of Shor 1972

Jagdeep - Mera Naam Soorma Bhopali Aise Hi Nahin Hai

Jagdeep(29 March 1939-8 July 2020) the comedian of Golden Era started his film career as a child artist extra in B. R. Chopra's Afsana, then went on to do films as a child artist in films like Ab Dilli Door Nahin, K. A. Abbas's Munna, Guru Dutt's Aar Paar, Bimal Roy's Do Bigha Zamin and AVM's Hum Panchi Ek Dal Ke. After Hum Panchi Ek Dal Ke, he received various accolades and high praise for his roles. Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru has gifted his personal staff to Jagdeep for his stellar performance in Hum Panchi Ek Daal Ke.
His most memorable character is Soorma Bhopali in Ramesh Sippy’s Sholay. His catchphrase in the film “Mera Naam Soorma Bhopali Aise Hi Nahin Hai” is still remembered by fans. 
 Recall the famous scene of Sholay in which our heroes, Jai and Veeru, come upon Soorma Bhopali telling a bunch of spellbound listeners of how he beat the two with a stick, and how he’s found out: his paan-stained teeth, that Bhopali lilt and comfort in a role meant strictly for laughs, made his Soorma unforgettable. It was a small guest appearance but became immortal.
In a span of 6 decades, he performed nearly 400 roles, this role became so popular that even after 45 years, people still remember that role. His son Naved was so inspired by his father that he produced a film with the same title 'Soorma Bhopali' in 1988. It was not a box office success but did relatively better in the state of Madhya Pradesh. This film was a hit in the city of Bhopal and the surrounding regions.
 Jagdeep’s last on-screen appearance was in the 2017 movie Masti Nahi Sasti co-starring Kader Khan, Johnny Lever, Shakti Kapoor, Ravi Kishan, and others in the lead roles.

A scene from Sholay 1975

Neetu Singh - Retired Too Early

Neetu Singh(8th July 1958) was only 21 when she took retirement from Bollywood. She was 15 when her first film as a Heroine opposite Randhir Kapoor was released. She appeared next in Yadon Ki Barat in the same year in the song 'Lekar Hum Diwana Dil' as a guest performance.
Her second film as a heroine was in the 1974 film 'Hawas' opposite Anil Dhawan. The same year she appeared with Rishi Kapoor as Heroine in.' Zehreela Insaan'. Their next film was 'Rafoochakkar' released in 1975 was a hit, this team repeated the success in 'Khel Khel Mein'  The hit pair were further fortified by, Kabhi Kabhie(1976) and Amar Akbar Anthony(1977).

Hugely popular with the public and within the industry, the bubbly Neetu Singh signed many films opposite the heroes like Amitabh Bachchan (Adalat, Parvarish, The Great Gambler, Yaarana), Rajesh Khanna (Chakravyuh), Vinod Khanna (Yuvraj), Randhir Kapoor (Kasme Vaade), Shatrughan Sinha (Kaala Patthar) and Jeetendra (Dharamveer, Priyatama).
Within 3 years she was among the top heroines of that time like Hema Malini, Rekha. and Zeenat Aman.

Rishi Kapoor in his biography said that he went abroad to shoot for his film Barood, a sense of loneliness gripped him. It was then that he realized the true essence of Neetu Singh in his life and poured his heart out in a telegram. Neetu Singh was elated and they began dating.
They dated for five years before tying the knot. At the time of marriage, Neetu Singh was at the peak of her acting career and was nominated for a Filmfare Award as Best Supporting Actress for Kaala Patthar (1979). But she decided to bid adieu to the film industry, raising murmurs about restrictions in the Kapoor family. She dismissed all the allegations, stating that it was her independent choice. They got married on Jan. 22, 1980,
The decision of quitting acting was her own, in 1979, when they decided to get married, she stopped accepting offers for more films. She decided to complete all the projects in hand. Even after marriage, she worked in a few films left uncompleted. Her last film released was
'Ganga Meri Ma' released in 1983 opposite Shatrughan Sinha.

She was seen in a guest appearance after a gap of 26 years in the 2009 film Love Aaj Kal, later in Do Dooni Chaar(2010)
Neetu Singh started acting at the age of 8 under the name Baby Sonia, and made her acting debut in 1966 with the film Suraj. Her other early roles included starring in the films Dus Lakh (1966), starring in a double role in the film Do Kaliyaan (1968), as well as appearing in Waris (1969) and Pavitra Paapi (1970). 

Song of Do Kaliyan 1968

Song of Rikshawala 1973

Song of Yadon Ki Barat 1973

Song of Rafoochakkar1974

Song of Khel Khel Mein 1974

Song of Kabhie Kabhie 1976

Song of Amar Akbar Anthony 1977

Song of Priyatama 1977

Song of Parwarish 1977

Meena Kumari was also a playback singer

Meena Kumari (1 August 1933– 31 March 1972) who is known as Tragedy Queen of Bollywood was not only an ace actress but also a singer and a poet. She started her career as a child artist. In an interview given in 1962, Meena Kumari explained that the fact she had been supporting her parents from the age of four gave her immense satisfaction. Director Vijay Bhatt cast her in the film Leatherface and on the first day she was paid Rs. 25.
She appeared in many films as a child artist In 1941 Mehboob Khan took her in his film "Bahen" as a child artist and also got her sing for the first time in the films. As a heroine, she rendered her voice to songs from films like Duniya Ek Sarai (1946), Piya Ghar Aaja (1948), Bichchade Balam (1948) and Pinjre Ke Panchhi (1966). She also sung for Pakeezah (1972), however, the song was not used in the film and was later released in the album Pakeezah-Rang Ba Rang (1977).
In this blog, I am posting the songs Meena Kumari sang for herself.

Song of Bahen 1941

Song of Duniya Ek Sarai (1946)

Song of Piya Ghar Aaja (1948)

Song of  Bichchade Balam (1948)

Song of  Bichchade Balam (1948)

Song of Pinjre Ke Panchhi (1966)

                                               CHAND TANHA HAI AASMAAN TANHA- MEENA KUMARI