BOLLYWOOD ACTRESS SHABANA AZMI ,
THE LEGEND BORN ON 1950 SEPTEMBER 18
Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. An alumna of the Film and Television Institute of India of Pune, she made her film debut in 1974 and soon became one of the leading actresses of Parallel Cinema, a Bengali new-wave movement known for its serious content and neo-realism and received government patronage during the times.[1][2]
Regarded as one of the finest actresses in India, Azmi's performances in films in a variety of genres have generally earned her praise and awards, which include a record of five wins of the National Film Award for Best Actress and several international honours.[1][3] She has also received four Filmfare Awards, and was honored among "women in cinema" at the 30th International Film Festival of India.[4]
Azmi has appeared in over 120 Hindi and Bengali films in both mainstream and independent cinema, and since 1988 she has acted in several foreign projects. Numerous of her films have been cited as a form of progressivism which portrays Indian society, its customs and traditions.
In addition to acting, Azmi is a social and women's rights activist. She is the wife of poet and screenwriter Javed Akhtar.[5] She is a Goodwill Ambassador of the United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA) which seeks to spread contraception and abortion in India in order to limit that country's population. In appreciation of Azmi's life and works, the Congress party's government gave her a nominated (unelected) membership of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of parliament.[6]
Early life and background[edit]
Shabana Azmi was born into a Muslim family in Hyderabad,[7] India. Her parents are Kaifi Azmi (an Indian poet) and Shaukat Azmi (a veteran Indian People's Theatre Association stage actress),[6] both of whom were members of the Communist Party of India. Her brother, Baba Azmi, is a cinematographer. Her parents had an active social life, and their home was always thriving with people and activities of the communist party. It was not unusual for her to wake up in the morning and find members of the communist party sleeping about, from a previous night's communist social that ran late.
Early in childhood, the environment in her home inculcated into her a respect for family ties, social and human values; and her parents always supported her to develop a passion for intellectual stimulation and growth.[8][9][10]
Azmi did her schooling at the premier girls' school, Queen Mary School, Mumbai. She completed a graduate degree in Psychology from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, and followed it with a course in acting at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune.[6] She described the reason she decided to attend the film institute, saying, "I had the privilege of watching Jaya Bhaduri in a (Diploma) film, Suman, and I was completely enchanted by her performance because it was unlike the other performances I had seen. I really marvelled at that and said, 'My god, if by going to the Film Institute I can achieve that, that's what I want to do.'" Azmi eventually topped the list of successful candidates of 1972.[11]
Career[edit]
Azmi graduated from the FTII in 1973 and went on to sign on Khwaja Ahmad Abbas' Faasla and began work on Kanti Lal Rathod's Parinay as well. Her first release, however, was Shyam Benegal's directorial debut Ankur (1974). Belonging to the arthouse genre of neo-realistic films, Ankur is based on a true story which occurred in Hyderabad. Azmi played Lakshmi, a married servant and villager who drifts into an affair with a college student who visits the countryside. Azmi was not the original choice for the film, and several leading actresses of that time refused to do it. The film went on to become a major critical success, and Azmi won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her performances.
Upperstall.com described her work in the film as "an outstanding psychologically penetrating performance very different from those seen normally till then in mainstream Hindi cinema", and famous independent filmmaker Satyajit Ray commented, "In Ankur she may not have fitted immediately into her rustic surroundings, but her poise and personality are never in doubt. In two high pitched scenes, she pulls out the stops to firmly establish herself as one of our finest dramatic actresses".[12]
She went on to receive the National Film Award consecutively for three years from 1983 to 1985 for her roles in movies, Arth, Khandhar and Paar. Another film Godmother (1999) earned her another National Film Award, taking her tally to five.
Azmi’s acting has been characterised by a real-life depiction of the roles played by her. In Mandi, she acted as a madam of a whorehouse. For this role, she put on weight and even chewed betel. Real life portrayals continued in almost all her movies. These included the role of a woman named Jamini resigned to her destiny in Khandhar and a typical urban Indian wife, homemaker and mother in Masoom.
She also acted in experimental and parallel Indian cinema. Deepa Mehta’s 1996 film Fire depicts her as a lonely woman, Radha, in love with her sister-in-law. The on-screen depiction of lesbianism (perhaps the first in Indian cinema) drew severe protests and threats from many social groups as well as by the Indian authorities. Her role as Radha brought her international recognition with the Silver Hugo Award for Best Actress at the 32nd Chicago Film Festival and Jury Award for Best Actress at Outfest, Los Angeles.[6]
She was the initial choice for Deepa Mehta's Water which was actually planned to hit the floors in 2000. Few scenes were already shot. Azmi had to shave her head with Nandita Das to portray the character of Shakuntala. However, due to political reasons, the film was shelved and later shot in 2005 with Seema Biswas replacing Azmi.[13]
Some of her notable films include Shyam Benegal's Nishant (1975), Junoon (1978), Susman (1986), and Antarnaad (1992); Satyajit Ray’s Shatranj Ke Khiladi; Mrinal Sen’s Khandhar, Genesis, Ek Din Achanak; Saeed Mirza’s Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Aata Hai; Sai Paranjpye’s Sparsh and Disha; Gautam Ghose’s Paar; Aparna Sen’s Picnic and Sati; Mahesh Bhatt’s Arth; Vinay Shukla’s Godmother. Her other films include the commercially successful Manmohan Desai's Amar Akbar Anthony and Parvarish and Prakash Mehra’s Jwalamukhi. Azmi starred in Hollywood productions such as John Schlesinger’s Madame Sousatzka (1988) and Roland Joffe’s City of Joy (1992).
Azmi debuted on the small screen in a soap opera titled Anupama. She portrayed a modern Indian woman who, while endorsing traditional Indian ethos and values, negotiated more freedom for herself. She had participated in many stage plays, and notable among them include M. S. Sathyu’s Safed Kundali (1980), based on The Caucasian Chalk Circle; and Feroz Abbas Khan's Tumhari Amrita with actor Farooq Sheikh, which ran for five years. She toured Singapore on an assignment with the Singapore Repertory Theatre Company, acting in Ingmar Bergman’s adaptation of Ibsen’s A Doll's House, which was directed by Rey Buono. Toured UK, Dubai and India with British production Happy Birthday Sunita by Theatre Company Rifco Arts in 2014.
Pointing out the differences in all these media, she once remarked that theatre was really the actor’s medium; the stage was actor’s space; cinema was the director’s medium; and television was a writer’s medium.[citation needed]
Personal life[edit]
Azmi married Javed Akhtar, a lyricist, poet and Bollywood scriptwriter[5] on 9 December 1984, making her a member of the Akhtar-Azmi film family.[14] It was Akhtar’s second marriage, the first being with Bollywood scriptwriter, Honey Irani. However Shabana's parents objected to her being involved with a very much married man with 2 children (Farhan Akhtar and Zoya Akhtar).[15][16] Indian actresses Farah Naaz and Tabu are her nieces and Tanvi Azmi is her sister-in-law.
Social activism[edit]
Azmi has been a committed social activist, active in supporting child survival and fighting AIDS and injustice in real life.[17][18] Azmi has voiced her opinion on a variety of issues. Initially, her activism drew skepticism and was dubbed by some as a publicity gimmick. However, she proved her critics wrong and used her celebrity status to emerge as a high-profile social activist.
She had participated in several plays and demonstrations denouncing communalism. In 1989, along with Swami Agnivesh and Asghar Ali Engineer, she undertook a four-day march for communal harmony from New Delhi to Meerut. Among the social groups whose causes she has advocated are slum dwellers, displaced Kashmiri Pandit migrants and victims of the earthquake at Latur (Maharashtra, India). The 1993 Mumbai riots appalled her and she emerged as a forceful critic of religious extremism. After the 11 September 2001 attacks, she opposed the advice of the grand mufti of Jama Masjid calling upon the Muslims of India to join the people of Afghanistan in their fight by retorting that the leader go there alone.[19]
She has campaigned against ostracism of victims of AIDS.[17] A small film clip issued by the Government of India depicts an HIV positive child cuddled in her arms and saying: "She does not need your rejection, she needs your love". In a Bengali film named Meghla Akash she played the role of a physician treating AIDS patients.
She has also given her voice to an HIV/AIDS education animated software tutorial created by the nonprofit organisation TeachAIDS.[20]
She talks extensively about her social activism in a 2-hour interview for Harvard Business School's Creating Emerging Markets project.[21]
Since 1989, she has been a member of the National Integration Council headed by the Prime Minister of India; a member of National AIDS Commission (of India); and was nominated (in 1997) as a member of the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian parliament. In 1998, the United Nations Population Fund appointed her as its Goodwill Ambassador for India.[17]
Selected filmography[edit]
Main article: Shabana Azmi filmography
She has acted in more than one hundred Hindi films, both in the mainstream as well as in Parallel Cinema. Several of her films have received attention in the international arena and Scandinavian countries, including at the Norwegian Film Institute, the Smithsonian Institution and the American Film Institute.
Ankur (1974) – Laxmi
Ishq Ishq Ishq (1974) – Pammy
Parinay (1974)
Faslah (1974) – Asha Premchand
Nishant (1976) – Sushila
Shaque (1976) – Meena Joshi
Fakira (1976) Geeta / Neeta C I D Police Inspector
Shatranj Ke Khiladi (1977) – Khurshid
Amar Akbar Anthony (1977) – Laxmi
Hira Aur Patthar (1977) – Gauri
Khel Khilari Ka (1977) – Rachna
Chor Sipahee (1977) – Priya
Kissa Kursi Ka (1977) - Janta
Parvarish (1977) – Shabbo
Karm (1977)
Jallian Wala Bagh (1977)
Adha Din Adhi Raat (1977)
Junoon (1978) – Firdaus
Swami (1978) – Saudamini
Atithee (1978) – Leela M. Kumar / Julie
Toote Khilone (1978)
Devata (1978) – Mary
Swarg Narak (1978) – Geeta
Khoon Ki Pukaar (1978) – Shano
Lahoo Ke Do Rang (1979) – Roma
Bagula Bhagat (1979)
Amar Deep (1979) – Radha
Jeena Yahan (1979)
Sparsh (1980) – Kavita
Thodisi Bewafaii (1980) – Neema Chowdhary
Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyoon Aata Hai (1980) – Stella D'Costa
Ek Baar Kaho (1980) – Aarti Mathur
Hum Paanch (1980) – Sundariya
Apne Paraye (1980) – Sheila
Sameera (1981) – Rama
Ek Hi Bhool (1981)
Arth (1982) – Mrs. Pooja Inder Malhotra
Yeh Nazdeekiyan (1982) - Shobhna
Namkeen (1982) – Mithu
Ashanti (1982) – Kamini
Masoom (1983) – Indu D. Malhotra
Avtaar (1983) – Radha
Mandi (1983) – Rukmini Bai
Log Kya Kahenge (1983)
Doosri Dulhan (1983)
Khandhar (1984) – Jamini
Bhavna (1984) – Bhavna
Lorie (film) (1984)
Gangvaa (1984)
Kaamyab (1984)
Aaj Ka M.L.A. Ram Avtar (1984)
Paar (1985) – Rama
Khamosh (1985)
Kamla (1985) – Sarita Jadhav
Ram Tere Kitne Nam (1985)
Genesis (1986)
Anjuman (1986) – Anjuman
Nasihat (1986)
Pestonjee (1987) – Jeroo
Susman (1987) – Gauramma
Itihaas (1987) – Sunaina
The Bengali Night (1988) – Indira Sen
Madame Sousatzka (1988) – Sushila
Libaas (1988)
Bada Din (1988) – Lilian
Ek Aadmi (1988)
Sati (1989) – Uma
Oonch Neech Beech (1989)
Ek Din Achanak (1989) – Neeta
Main Azaad Hoon (1989) – Subhashini Saigal
Muqaddar Ka Badshaah (1990) – Advocate Sharda Singh
Disha (1990)
Ek Doctor Ki Maut (1990)
Amba (1990) – Amba Bhanupratap Singh
Jhoothi Shaan (1991) – Krishna
Fateh (1991)
Dharavi (1991)
Antarnaad (1991)
City of Joy (1992) – Kamla Pal
Patang (1992) - Jitni
Adharm (1992 film) (1992) - Mamta Verma
Immaculate Conception
In Custody (1993) – Imtiaz Begum
Son of the Pink Panther (1993) – Queen
Fire (1996) – Radha
Saaz (1997) – Bansidhar (Bansi) Vrundavan
Mrityudand (1997) – Chandravati
Side Streets (1998) – Mrs. Chandra Bipin Raj
Earth (1998) – voice of older Lenny
Godmother (1999) – Rambhi
Hari-Bhari (2000) – Ghazala
Gaja Gamini (2000) – Premchand's Nirmala
Makdee (2002) – Makdee
Ahilya Bai (2002) – Harku Bai
Meghla Akash (2002) – Doctor (Special Appearance)
Tehzeeb (2003) – Rukhsana Jamal
Morning Raga (2004) – Swarnlatha
15 Park Avenue (2005) – Anjali "Anju" Mathur
Odakalu Bimba (2005)
Umrao Jaan (2006) – Khannum Jaan
Banglatown Banquet (2006)
Raagam-Telugu Movie (2007)
Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. (2007) – Nahid
Genesis (2007) – Mrs Soni
Loins of Punjab Presents (2007) – Rita Kapoor
Sorry Bhai! (2008) – Mother Gayatri
It's a Wonderful Afterlife (2010) – Mrs. Sethi
Kalpvriksh (2012) – Gypsy Woman
Midnight's Children (2012) – Naseem
Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola (2012) – Chaudhari Devi
The Reluctant Fundamentalist (2013) – Ammi
A Decent Arrangement (2014) - Preeti Mehta
Kalpvriksh (2015) – Gypsy Woman
Chalk n Duster (2016) - Vidya
Neerja (2016) - Rama
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