Bollywood celebs in Advertisements

Endorsing a brand by a Bollywood celebrity is not a current trend but being done before the independence of the country. The biggest advertiser in India was Lux Soap. The launch of the first Lux soap in India dates back to the year 1929, a black and white Ad that featured a popular actress of the time, Leela Chitnis in 1941. Since then all the popular heroines of their time appeared in Lux advertisements. 
On researching on this subject I noticed that most of the Top heroes did appear on one Ad or another except Dev Anand. I came across an Ad of a Pickle company being endorsed by Dilip Kumar, similarly in one Ad of an airline company Raj Kapoor, Balraj Sahni, and Nirupa Roy appeared together.

 Lux entered India in 1929 and while its early advertisements would feature Hollywood actresses, Some of these were printed in English newspapers and magazines. Of course, the westernized and elite movie-going Indian audience reading these newspapers would have been able to identify known faces.³ These two images, for instance, featured in the Times of India Annual of 1937. While their faces may appear vaguely familiar, they do not seem to belong to any recognizable star. Perhaps some of them were just generic images of "glamorous women," the presumed visual iconography of stars.

Appearing in a Lux advertisement was indeed a “must do” thing for a female movie star in India, a way of announcing her arrival in the industry. I am not certain about the first heroine of Bollywood was Leela Chitnis or Devika Rani but either of two may be the first Bollywood celebrities to appear in an Ad. The first Lux Ad with Bollywood Heroine came in the year 1941. I came across of Devika Rani's Ad for Afghan Snow Cream, once very popular in India.

In the 30s and 40s Calendar, Ads were very popular as every household used to keep one calendar.  Before the celebrity Ads, the trend of the pictures of God & Goddess was there. Below I am posting two images of calendar Ads, one of the images of Lord Krishna in the 1932 Calender and other of Meena Kumari in the 1954 Calender.

Besides Meena Kumari, the calendar features Suraiya, Kamini Kaushal, Krishna Kumari, Shashikala and Rehana (She had appeared as a Lux girl as early as 1947 after the success of two Filmistan films, Shehnai and Sajan).By this time colored printing in India had started. Suraiya who was well established as a singing actress also featured in the 1954 calendar.

In the 50s and 60s, Madhubala was also in great demand by the advertising companies, she appeared in lux soap as well as in Godrej soap and also in a Beedi Ad

Enjoy the best collection of Ads from good old days featuring famous celebrities of Bollywood endorsing different products

 Do you remember this print ad of Kishore Kumar?

Many of you will be surprised to see Prem Chopra, a villain of yesteryears in an Ad

Nirupa Roy chooses the pure, white luxury of the Lux beauty soap and suggests you get the big bath size, just like she did. 

Ashok Kumar in Ambika Mills

Helen in Lux

Shammi Kapoor in Paan Parag Ad, infract Ashok Kumar was also in this Ad

  

Nanda in the 1960s was among popular heroines, she too appeared in Lux Ad.

Mala Sinha, Sadhana, Asha Parekh, and Sharmila Tagore were the top heroines of the 60s also endorsed Lux soap

Zeenat Aman In Air India

In the 70s Rekha, Hema Malini were the hot girls for the Ad industry, they endorsed many products. Hema Malini with Dharmendra was also a popular modeling product.

With the opening of the economy in India, the advertising industry had a boom. A lot of products were endorsed by celebrities. In fact, many film stars started endorsing many products. Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan became the leading actors in the field of advertising.

One point of time Amitabh Bachchan was the top earner from endorsing various products. Even now at the age of 77, he remains to be most sought after celebrity for endorsements.

Here are a few of his iconic ads.

Shahrukh Khan in various Ads.

A few old iconic Ads by various Stars

It's not that the Advertisement Industry used only Bollywood Hero Heroines for the Ads but also gave the film industry many celebrities who started their career as a model then entered Bollywood 

We all know that Shahid Kapoor was a Complan boy, but did you know that he starred in a Pepsi commercial with SRK, Kajol, and Rani way back in the '90s

Before making her big debut in Om Shanti Om, Deepika Padukone can be seen dancing to the tunes of "Kya Aap Close Up Karte Hain?", and flashing her million dollar smile.

While Akshay Kumar may be a health freak now, way back he did a print ad for Red and White cigarettes.

The bubbly girl Pretty Zinta did a small appearance in a Cadbury ad, she was noticed there and then came into films.

The Russian Connection of Dev Anand

Not many of us know about the Russian connection of iconic Indian actor Dev Anand. In his struggling days, he had a leaning towards communism. In fact, he became a member of IPTA  along with his brother Chetan Anand. He visited Russia in 1954 as a part of an Indian Film Delegation along with Raj Kapoor, Nargis, Balraj Sahni, and Nirupa Roy.

The popularity of Indian films and their songs was at its peak during those days. In fact, 800 prints each of Dev Anand’s film Rahi and Raj Kapoor’s Aawara were released in all the languages of the 15 Soviet republics. The adulation Indian films got and the spontaneous enthusiasm of people was simply overwhelming.
Aawara and Rahi became so famous and popular across the country that when in 1955, India’s first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru visited the Soviet Union, he took Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, and Dilip Kumar, the legendary trio of then Bombay film industry, as part of his delegation. To his amazement, Nehru found that the whole country was singing “Aawara.”
“Rahi” was based on Mulk Raj Anand's, Two Leaves and a Bud, scripted and directed by K.A. Abba. It was India's official entry to the first-ever Venice and Moscow International Film Festivals in 1954. The other Dev Anand film screened in this festival was the 1952 film Aandhiyan written and directed by Chetan Anand. It also won international accolades at the Venice, Moscow and Peking film festivals.
Again when in 1955, India’s first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru visited the Soviet Union, he took Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, and Dilip Kumar, the legendary trio of then Bombay film industry, as part of his delegation. 
 By that time the “trio” had already made a big impact on the people throughout India through their leading roles in Hindi films, sympathizing with common and downtrodden people and conveying the message of socialist egalitarianism, love, and freedom. Their roles in films resonated well with Nehru’s socialist ideology and will later strike a chord with Russians.
Here I am posting a rare video of Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor, and Nargis in Russia

                             RAJ KAPOOR, NARGIS & DEV ANAND in Tbilisi-1954

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

Jagdeep- An actor who gave us memorable songs

Jagdeep(born 29 March 1939), 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.
He was launched as a leading man by AVM in the films Bhabhi, Barkha and Bindaya, and went on to do a few more films as a leading man. We remember him today for some of the hit songs picturized on him like "Paas Baitho Tabiyat Bahal Jayegi" from Punarmilan, "In Pyar ki Rahon Mein" from the same film, "Chal Ud Ja Re Panchhi" and "Chali Chali Re Patang", from the superhit movie Bhabhi, where he is paired opposite Nanda, and "Aa Gaye Yaaro Jeene Ke Din" from Phir Wohi Raat.
He was a hero of 5 films starring opposite Nanda, Azra, and Amita. He got success only as a comedian. He acted in more than 400 films. He is also known for his appearances in many horror movies, especially in projects of the Ramsay Brothers. He appeared in famous hits like Purana Mandir and 3D Saamri.
He was a natural actor, believed in original acting by bringing out his own style. When people make his signature sound from his character Soorma Bhopali in Sholay, everybody knows it is Jagdeep’s style. In this blog, I am posting some of the memorable songs picturized on him.

Song from Hum Panchhi Ek Daal Ke (1957)

Song from Bhabhi 1957

Song from Bhabhi 1957

Song from  Barkha (1959)

Song from Bindiya (1960) 

Song from Punarmilan 1964

Song from Punarmilan 1964

Song from Khilona 1970

Priya Rajvansh - Worked only for Chetan Anand.

Priya Rajvansh acted in only 6 movies in a span of 22 years from 1964 to 1986.  She was introduced to Bollywood by Chetan Anand. Her first film was Haqeeqat released in 1964.  Her next movie Heer Ranjha came 6 yrs later in 1970 which was also a super hit.
Chetan Anand cast her in all his movies, giving her the lead actress roles’ against Raaj Kumar, Rajesh Khanna, Dev Anand, and Naveen Nishchal. 
She was born as Veera Sunder Singh in Shimla on 30 Dec 1936. Her schooling and graduation were completed in Shimla. After that, she joined the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London  One of her photographs, clicked by a London photographer, somehow reached the Hindi film industry. A movie maker of that time called Thakur Ranbeer Singh who was also a friend of Chetan Anand brought her to meet Chetan Anand, in 1962 and they cast her in one of their films, Haqeeqat (1964). The film became a hit. 
 Priya Rajvansh was soon in a relationship with her mentor who had recently separated from his wife. Initially, the industry was hesitant to take her because of her anglicized accent and western femininity did not click well with the Indian audience. 
Her next film, Heer Raanjha came out only in 1970, where she acted opposite the rage of that time, actor Raaj Kumar, and the film was a hit. Then came Hanste Zakhm, arguably the finest film of her career, in 1973. Her other noted films were Hindustan Ki Kasam (1973), with Raaj Kumar, and Kudrat (1981), paired opposite Rajesh Khanna, where she had a parallel role with Hema Malini as the lead. She also starred opposite Dev Anand in Saheb Bahadur in 1977. Her last film Haathon Ki Lakeeren came out in 1985, after which she ended her film career.
She was found dead in the bathroom of her bungalow on 27 March 2000. It was Chetan Anand's Ruia Park bungalow in Juhu, Mumbai, India. Police charged Chetan Anand's sons Ketan Anand and Vivek Anand along with their employees Mala Choudhary and Ashok Chinnaswamy with her murder.

Song of Haqeeqat 1964

Song of Heer Ranjha 1970

Song of Hanste Zakhm 1973

Song of Hindustan Ki Kasam (1973)

Song of Saheb Bahadur 1977

Nimmi - Acted with the Golden Trio of Bollywood

She made her debut in Raj Kapoor’s Barsaat and it was the legendary actor-director, who had given her the screen name of Nimmi. After the super success of Barsaat, she appeared in a string of hit movies in the 50s and early 60s. 
She acted with the top yesteryear stars such as Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand, and Raj Kapoor. Some of her memorable movies included Sazaa(1951), Mehboob Khan’s Aan (1952), Daag (1952), Amar (1954), Uran Khatola (1955), Basant Bahar (1956) and Mere Mehboob (1963).
Her original name was Nawab Banoo, her mother was a courtesan, a singer and an actress, known as Wahidan. Her father, Abdul Hakim, worked as a military contractor in Meerut U.P.Nimmi was born on 18th Feb 1933 in Agra. Her mother died when she was only eleven years old. Nimmi was therefore sent to live in Abbottabad near Rawalpindi with her maternal grandmother. The partition of India happened in 1947, and Abbottabad fell in Pakistan. Nimmi's grandmother moved to Bombay.
The famous filmmaker Mehboob Khan who was known to her mother once invited the young Nimmi to watch the making of his current production Andaz at Central Studios where Raj Kapoor met her for the first time. Raj Kapoor was looking for the second lead actress for his film Barsaat opposite Premnath,he offered her that role. Nimmi accepted that role. She played the role of an innocent mountain shepherdess in love with a heartless city man. Barsaat, released in 1949, made movie history. It was a phenomenal critical and commercial success. Despite the presence of Nargis, Raj Kapoor, and Premnath, Nimmi had a very prominent and well-received role and was an instant hit with audiences.
In 1950, she appeared in 3 films but none of the films were successful, in 1951 her film Sazaa with Dev Anand and Deedar with Dilip Kumar released consolidated her position as the second lead role actress.
Besides Nargis with whom she co-starred in Barsaat and Deedar, Nimmi also appeared alongside many notable leading ladies including Madhubala (Amar), Suraiya (Shama), Geeta Bali (Usha Kiran), and Meena Kumari (Char Dil Char Rahen (1959). Nimmi was also a singer and sang her own songs in the film Bedardi (1951) in which she also acted. However, she never continued singing and recorded songs only for this film.
Mehboob Khan cast her opposite Dilip Kumar in Aan(1952). The film was made with an extremely large budget and was a great hit. It was one of the first Indian movies to have a worldwide release. The film had an extremely lavish London premiere which Nimmi attended. 
After the great box-office success of Aan, Mehboob Khan asked her to appear in his next film Amar (1954). Nimmi played a poor, milkmaid seduced by a lawyer (Dilip Kumar). The film also starred Madhubala as Kumar's wronged fiancée. The film was not a commercial success, Nimmi's intense performance and the film were applauded by critics.
 In Uran Khatola (1955), her last of five films with Dilip Kumar, she starred in one of the biggest box-office successes of her career. In 1956 too she had 2 hit films. Basant Bahar opposite Bharat Bhushan and Bhai Bhai opposite Ashok Kumar and Kishor Kumar. She received the critic's award for best actress for her role in Bhai Bhai
In the late 1950s, Nimmi worked with renowned directors Chetan Anand (Anjali ), K. A. Abbas (Char Dil Char Rahen) and Vijay Bhatt (Angulimala). Prepared to take risks, Nimmi took on controversial characterizations, such as the prostitute of Char Dil Char Raahen (1959). It was during this phase that Nimmi became very selective as she strove for better quality projects and roles. 
She married in 1960 and decided to quit films but at this time K Asif signed her in Love & God even before completing his magnum opus Mughal-e-Azam.The film was shelved altogether when the director K. Asif died.It was later released on 6 June 1986 by that time Nimmi was retired for over 2 decades.
Nimmi died on 25th March 2020 in Bombay  She was 87 years old and had been in and out of the hospital for quite some time. 

Song of Barsaat 1949

Song of Sazaa 1951

Song of Aan 1952

Song of Amar 1954

Song of Udan Khatola 1955

Song of Basant Bahar 1956

Song of  Bhai Bhai  1956

Nanda: Her popular songs

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 took her as a leading actress in her film Toofan Aur Diya released in 1956. But after that, she was offered roles of sister or side roles in many films. Dev Anand took her in his sister's role in Navketan's Kala Bazarin 1960 with a promise he would cast her heroine in his next film. It was in Hum Dono released in 1961, she was one of the heroines in that film.
After Hum Donobig banners started approaching her with good offers. Nanda went on to rule the screen space from 1960 till 1973 with Nutan, Waheeda Rehman, and Sadhna. Some of her most memorable roles were in 'Jab Jab Phool Khile', 'Gumnaam' and 'Hum Dono'.She was once again one of the heroines in Dev Anand's Teen Deviyan.
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 
Nanda was nominated for Filmfare Award five times for her performance in Bhabhi (1957), Aanchal (1960), Ittefaq (1969), Ahista Ahista (1981) and Prem Rog (1982). 
She won Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for 'Aanchal' 

Song of Toofan aur Diya 1956

Song of Chhoti Bahen 1959

Song of Dhool Ka Phool 1959

Song of Usne Kaha Tha 1960

Song of Hum Dono 1961

Song of  Mehndi Lagi Mere Haath 1962

Song of  Nartakee 1963

Song of  Aaj Aur Kal 1964

 Song of  Jab Jab Phool Khile 1965 

Song of Teen Deviyan 1965

Song of Gumnaam 1965

Song of Parivar 1967

Song of The Train 1970

Song of Shor 1972

Song of Joroo Ka Ghulam' 1972