Shashikala

Shashikala was born in a Marathi family in Solapur, Maharashtra. She started her acting career at the age of five, performing in stage shows in her hometown. She moved to Mumbai with her family when her father became bankrupt and ill. She struggled to find work in films and worked as a house-help in nearby households. She got her first break in a cameo role in a Qawwali song in the film Zeenat (1945), produced by Noor Jehan's husband Shaukat Hussain Rizvi. She then appeared in films like Jugnu (1947), Arzoo (1950), and Daku (1955). She rose to fame with her role in Bimal Roy's Sujata (1959), and won two Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Actress for Aarti (1962) and Gumrah (1963). She also received the Bengal Film Journalists' Association Awards for Best Supporting Actress for these films. She played various roles, ranging from bubbly and feisty to vampish and scheming, in films like Ayee Milan Ki Bela (1964), Himalay Ki God Mein (1965), Waqt (1965), Anupama (1966), Phool Aur Patthar (1966), Neel Kamal (1968), and Khubsoorat (1980). She also worked in television serials like Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai (2002), Son Pari (2004), and Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin (2005). She was awarded the Padma Shri in 2007 for her contribution to Indian cinema. She also worked with Mother Teresa and helped the poor and needy. She was married to Om Prakash Saigal, a film director and a relative of the legendary singer K.L. Saigal. She had two daughters, Shailaja and Rekha. Rekha died of cancer in 1993. Shashikala died of natural causes at her residence in Mumbai on 4 April 2021, at the age of 88.