SMRITI BISWAS ACTRESS OF 1940`S 1950`S

SMRITI BISWAS ACTRESS 

OF 1940`S 1950`S

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.Smriti Biswas was an actress in the 1940s and 1950s, playing mainly the glamorous vamp or the second lead and sometimes parallel heroine. Some of her famous Hindi films include Shamsheer (1953), Chandni Chowk (1954), Baap re Baap (1955), Ab-e-Hayat (1955), Bhagam Bhag (1956), Arab ka Saudagar(1956), Jagte Raho (1956), Sailaab (1956), Yahoodi ki Ladki (1957) and Dilli ka Thug (1958) besides Bengali films like Neel Akasher Neechey (1958). She retired from films in 1958 following her marriage to doctor-turned-actor-turned-producer-director SD Narang in many of whose films she had acted.  Looking at yesteryear Filmfare reviews of her films, she almost always received positive reviews for most of her performances and in films like Shamsheer, was said to be the saving grace of the film.

One had been trying to find Smriti for months, in fact, a good year or so. She was known to be good friends with Nargis, Nirupa Roy, Shyama, Hemant Kumar, Guru and Geeta Dutt among others in the film industry. We were given phone numbers by a couple of those we met but on calling up, found they were disconnected. We had no postal address but vague directions of the area where she lived. We even sent people physically to the leads we were given but…

However, thankfully things have a weird way of working themselves out in this crazy world. Shivi was making an advertising film which had another actress, Anju Mahendru, acting in it. During casual conversation, she told him of a friend she had who owned some old cameras and wanted them appraised. On being asked who it was, she said Smriti Biswas! Shivi could barely conceal his excitement as he called me. Immediately, a meeting was fixed up. Shivi and I met Smriti and her two sons at Anju Mahendru’s residence. Throughout the conversation, Smriti was full of life as she recalled her acting days, the yesteryears and the 1950s in particular. What’s more, she immediately agreed to grant us a proper interview a couple of days later at her residence.

Though Shivi couldn’t be present and with Arwa now staying in London, I would say that Smriti Biswas’ interview with me was one of the best interviews one has had and this is not taking anything away from the other people I have met, all of whom have been extremely gracious and kind by sparing valuable time to talk to us. Once Smriti opened up and the floodgate of memories came pouring out, she answered all questions patiently and honestly. Her eyes sparkled as she recalled the nights spent in shacks at Powai lake for fishing trips or as she described her role as a co-conspirator in helping good friend Geeta Dutt keep a tab on Guru Dutt’s whereabouts once he was out of the house!  

She clarified doubts on fellow vamp Kuldip Kaur’s death due to lockjaw, remembered the wild times the film industry had at Raj Kapoor’s legendary Holi bashes and enthusiastically recalled taking part in cricket matches the industry used to organise.  She also made no bones about how much she missed acting post marriage and motherhood but admitted that Narang was very clear when they married that he wanted a housewife and mother to his children and not a working actress.  


All this, while she played the perfect hostess ensuring one was properly taken care of with snack after snack. What’s more, at the end of the interview, she graciously thanked one for helping her relive the good old days and generously gifted me some priceless (to me) movie memorabilia – a few of her film stills, a couple of books authored by husband SD Narang, a lobby card of Arab ka Saudagar and the song booklet of Yahoodi ki Ladki among other things.  Needless to say, I was extremely touched.

There is a flip side, however, to the joyous experience of meeting these great film personalities of yesteryear. The more I meet people from the golden age of Hindi cinema, the more I regret not having been a filmmaker in that glorious era.





..Smriti Biswas – Interview

Her enthusiasm to revisit her past is perceptible. Her kohl-laden eyes and crimson lips only seem to highlight the fact. “I love jewellery,” she says pointing to the uncut diamonds on her ears and a panorama of rings. “This one is an emerald and this is a Burma ruby,” says erstwhile actress Smriti Biswas playing with her fingers. But more precious seems a pile of press cuttings by her bedside … one as Filmfare’s covergirl, of Raj Kapoor’s Holi bashes, of charity cricket matches… and one in a swimsuit! Though frayed, they testify her golden innings in the 1950s. “Stars those days lived life fully,” she chuckles. “Today they have become clever.” Her animated conversation overruns my cassette. Any doubt she dubs herself a `talkative girl’?

She’s more than 85. But her recall of those early years is bang on. The days when tongawallahs hummed her hit number Jawani mastani (Dhamkee). When as a kathiawadi in Shamsher she matched steps with Bhagwan Dada. Or when she hosted kebab parties for B.R. Chopra and carried rosgollas for Madhubala in a matki. And even those when she played the dholak at best friend Geeta Roy’s wedding with Guru Dutt. Also vivid is her recollection of playing heroine opposite Dev Anand in Humsafar. “We were shooting a scene at Lido cinema. I had to slap Dev. But I couldn’t do it. He took my hand and showed me how I should be doing it. He was a perfect gentleman,” says the dancer-actress.

But it’s not only memories that she dwells on. Today she’s busy discussing ideas with older son Rajeev Narang (the younger one is Jeetu) who’ll be making his directorial debut soon.She’s also excited about setting up her home in the hills in Nasik. Her passion for cooking too stands undiminished. But she misses her gang of girls. “My best friends Nirupa Roy and Begum Para are no more. Shyama lives far away in town. Shashikala and I aren’t in touch. And Nargis, I lost years ago,” she says wistfully.

“My husband made me promise I’d quit films”

She was riding a professional high in the late 1940s in Bengali and Hindi cinema when she fell in love with doctor ­turned-producer-director S.D. Narang. She went on to play heroine in a line-up of his productions including Ek Aurat, Nai Bhabhi, Aparajita and later the costume drama Arab Ka Saudagar, Yahudi Ki Ladki and a cameo in Dilli Ka Thug.The romance raged on for 10 years unable to culminate in marriage. “We belonged to different religions; I’m a Protestant Christian and he was a Hindu,” she explains.

But when she finally walked the aisle with Narang in 1960, she had to walk away from the arc lights. “Narang saab told me, Peeche mud kar mat dekhna (never look back)! You’ll have to give up films. I want a wife not an actress’. We got married after I gave him that promise.” She continues.”I never went on a film set after that. Even when Narang saab’s film Anmol Moti (an underwater movie with Babita and Jeetendra) was shot in the swimming pool of our bungalow, I didn’t go to see it. I stopped attending parties. I was so happy being at home; I’d paint, write, cook,” she says. “Even after Narang saab passed away in 1986, I didn’t return to films.” Her eyes inadvertently fill up. “I was very happy in my married life. I still cry for him even after 25 years of his demise. He was out of this world. He was a man of character… shooting se ghar, ghar se shooting.”

Meena Kumari liked to live in pain”

She has fond memories of her colleagues too, one of them being Meena Kumari (they worked together in Chandni Chowk). Meena even shared homegrown remedies for arthritis and diabetes with her. “Meena would say eat basi (leftover) roti with sabzi for breakfast and you’ll never have to worry about these ailments.” She adds, “She was unhappy and liked to remain in that state. It helped her write. She used to write beautiful Urdu shayri (verse), which she’d recite for us. She was forever searching for love, something she never found.” The last time she met the actress was the day Guru Dutt passed away. “We had taken Geeta (singer-wife of Guru Dutt) in Meena’s car. We were going for the cremation at Charni Road. Geeta was hysterical. We couldn’t control her. She tried to free herself and kept screaming `Mujhe jaane do (let me go)!” She was rushing towards Guru’s body. With the state she was in, we thought it best to take her home. We turned the car and took her to her brother Mukul Dev’s house.” She adds, “That was also the last time I saw Meena.”

“Waheeda should not be blamed for Guru Dutt’s suicide”

Incidentally, Smriti was very close to both Guru and Geeta. “We lived in Khar and met every day. Often I’d have dinner with them. Guru liked Konkani food. Geeta’s tiffin came from her mother’s house. She enjoyed macher jhol and other fish delicacies.” She continues, “Narang saab was a member of the boating club in Powai. We had a floating shack there where all of us went fishing.” Smriti featured in Guru Dutt’s Sailaab and says he was more like a ‘girlfriend’. “When he bought a house on Pali Hill, he took me to see it. But the house didn’t prove lucky for him. It brought strife between Geeta and him ”

And what was the reason for the discord? “He was a very sweet person, but thoda eccentric the!” About rumours of Guru Dutt’s fondness for Waheeda Rehman irking Geeta, Smriti says, “I really don’t know what went wrong. Waheeda should not be blamed for his suicide. She was a sweet girl and innocent.” She continues, “He was depressed because his last few had not done well. May be, he wanted Waheeda to remain his exclusive heroine and not work for other banners.”

She’s protective about Geeta too. “Geeta was sawli (dusky) but so beautiful! She had a beautiful voice. But yes, she was suspicious and possessive. It wasn’t her weakness, it was her nature. She was my jaane jigar (sweetheart). I could see no wrong in her.” She adds, “Guru and Geeta loved each other a lot. But a creative person wafts space. He couldn’t handle the possessiveness. When Geeta pestered him for attention, he’d say in jest, ‘Bore mat karo (don’t bore me)’.”

“Nargis gave me a naughty birthday card”

Smriti was also friends with the hit onscreen couple Raj Kapoor and Nargis and featured in Jagte Raho with them. “Once we went to Ceylon (Sri Lanka) for a charity cricket match. Raj Kapoor headed one team and Nargis the other. In the first few overs, I bowled out two Ceylonese artistes. I was then carried around the stadium!” she says adding, “At night we’d go around the city in horse carriages, even to casinos.”

Another evening she remembers is when Russian artistes had visited R.K. Studios. “Nargis, Nirupa and I served snacks. We also waltzed with the Russians.” Holi bashes at R.K. Studio were also famous. “We’d throw Raj Kapoor in the pool.” She adds that Raj was a foodie and was particular about his menu. “Once I heard him asking his cook John ‘Why is there less marrow in the soup?’ After eating all kinds of kebabs he’d want to eat ghar ka dal bhaat. His wife Krishnaji (Kapoor) would send him a dabba every day, though she never stepped inside the studio.

Smriti says that Nargis was ecstatic when she later married Sunil Dutt. “One day she called me up and said that Dutt saab wanted to eat malai prawns. I prepared king-sized prawns. On seeing the huge bowl, Dutt saab, pulled it towards him and said, ‘I’ll eat this alone’!” She continues, “Nargis wasn’t fond of cooking but for Sanju’s (Sanjay Dutt) birthday she’d prepare a pudding. When Sanju was sent to the boarding school at Sanawar, she’d often miss him and drive off to see him. Sometimes she’d tell Sunil, `Dutt saab, Baba ko bulalo na (please call Baba back home)’. He’d say, ‘No, let him study’.”

When Nargis was suffering from cancer, Smriti didn’t visit her at the hospital. “I couldn’t bear to see her so ill. I’d rather remember the happy moments, like the one when she gave me a naughty card on my birthday,” she says digging out yet another clip from her archive. [ Interviewed by Farhana Farook in 2011.]





In 1940, old-time superstar Dev Anand proposed marriage to a girl. The girl refused. And married another man. Then she stayed in Juhu's luxurious Narang Villa. The story is not the same.

Dainik Bhaskar has reported on Smriti Vishwas Narang, who has worked in films like Abhimaan, Modern Girl, Delhi's Thugs. According to this, Smriti, 93, lives in a small house in Nashik city with her two sons. She has worked with Raj Kapoor, Kishore Kumar, Balraj Sahni and Nargis. Worked in 90 films.She is the one staying in Narang Villa. At that time, she married SD Narang, a hero, producer, actor and director. SD died in 1986. After that, Smriti, a builder was called to repair the bungalow. He said stay out for a few days. Will fix it again. Since then, she has not been able to go to that bungalow. Since then, she has changed 28 houses. Leaving Mumbai and had to live in Nashik. Not only this, they also had bungalows in Delhi, Mumbai and Mahabaleshwar. But his relatives took away the weapon. He has also received awards like Dada Saheb Phalke Golden Era.But this was not always the case. One of his interviews was published in 1954. His life was different in this.

According to the Cineplot website, in this interview he was described as Rasgulla of Bengal. Happy, flirty and cool. Smriti had told in the interview that she is the man of her family. Since the age of 9, she has been giving money to the family. While his younger naughty sister Nina went to school. She also used to help him. Later Nina has helped him stay in Nashik.It has been told in the interview that before coming to Mumbai, he had done 26 films in Bengal and Lahore. But in Bombay, he was introduced as a vamp. She used to come as a second lady with Hero Heroine. But she became the heroine in the 1954 film Bhagat Singh. But she was saying that the public only remembers the film as the villain of Hamdard.

Smriti used to study at United Missionary Girls High School in Calcutta. His father was the headmaster of the Scottish Church Collegiate School. Mummy was the headmistress of another school. So Smriti used to say that her entire school life was like hostel life. Had to dance secretly. Because the family members did not support it. When he worked in Bimal Roy's film Humrahi at the age of 9, there was a riot in the house. But then he acted in Hemen Gupta's film Duality. After this the whole family was behaving as if Smriti had committed a crime. His school was also changed.Then these people went to Lahore. There he was made a Ragini film. Pran was a hero in it. Later, both life and memory started becoming villains. At that time she used to earn 3 thousand rupees per month. This was a huge amount for them. But by then there were riots in Lahore. Really After this, the whole family moved to Delhi. He met SD Narang here. Narang made Hindi film Ek Baat with him and Bengali film Chinne Putul i.e. Chinese Doll. She considered Chinne Putul as her best film.

In 1949, his film Abhimaan. It also won him awards and works. After this she moved to Mumbai in 1951. Here Gyan Mukherjee gave him a small role in the film Shamsheer. But in this role, he had to dance with the then dancing Sunsan Bhagwan Dada. After this he got stardom. The role of Vamp was found in the film Hamdard And then Bollywood started making vamps while typecasting them in their own way. This style of Bollywood looks amazing. In the thriller film Sadashiv used to take Amrapurkar, Paresh Rawal, Bindu, Ranjith. All the suspense was already over. Used to know who is a villain.Smriti was showing him photographs at that time. In this, she also became the covergirl of Filmfare. There were also pictures of Holi parties and cricket matches of Raj Kapoor. She was telling that earlier filmstars used to enjoy a lot. Now all people pay attention to cleverness. Then he told how the song of the film Threat was very popular among Jawani Mastani Tangwewalas. Smriti used to organize kebab party with BR Chopra. She used to take Rasgulla in Matki for Madhubala. Along with Dev Anand, he also played the role of heroine in the film Humsafar. In this film, he had to slap Dev. But she could not kill. She was going scared Dev told how to slap.


Nirupa Roy, Begum Para, Shyama, Nargis used to be her friends. These people used to have a lot of fun. But when the doctor was married to filmmaker Narang, Narang said that now do not look back. The romance lasted for 10 years. After that she never went to film. This was the year of 1960. After this, she started living at home. She reads, writes, cooks. She did not go to films even after Narang died.He also shot in Chandni Chowk with Meena Kumari. Meena had said that if rancid is eaten with bread and vegetables, there will be no problem of arthritis and diabetes. His last meeting with him was on the death of Gurudutt. Smriti was also close to Guru Dutt and his wife Geeta. Many times these people used to eat together. Narang was a member of the Boating Club of Powai. So these people used to roam too. Smriti also worked in Guru's film Sailab. She used to say that Gurudutt was like a girlfriend. Smriti told that Gurudutt was an artist. But Waheeda Rehman had no role in his suicide.He also worked with Raj Kapoor and Nargis in the film Jagte Raho. Once these people went to Sri Lanka. There was a charity cricket match. The captain of one team was Raj Kapoor, the other was Nargis. When Smriti took two wickets, she was sitting on her shoulder and circled the field. She says that these people used to throw Raj Kapoor in the swimming pool. Nargis told that she was not fond of cooking but used to make padding on Sanju's birthday. She wanted to call Sanju from boarding school, but Sunil Dutt refused to let her study now. She also told that Nargis was in the hospital due to cancer. But Sunil Dutt did not go to see them. Because they could not bear their pain. Nargis also gave Smriti a 'naughty' greeting card.

.Nashikites have extended a helping hand to Smriti Biswas-Narang, an actress who is living a difficult life in the land of Dadasaheb Phalke, despite her dominance in the film industry for almost three decades due to her beauty and energetic acting. During the 'Nashik Marathon' organized by Nashik Police, a check of Rs. 51,000 was handed over to him by the Guardian Minister Girish Mahajan. At this time, the Commissioner of Police Dr. Ravindra Kumar Single was present. On February 17, Lokmat had published a story titled 'Acting Empress lives a miserable life in Nashik'.

Smriti, who once had a fortune of crores of rupees, now lives in a 500-square-foot flat in the Deolali camp area. People in the entertainment industry have turned their backs on the poor and have no money to pay for medical treatment. Dr. Smriti. Rajiv and Jitu are two unmarried children, both of whom are working to earn a living. Nashik residents have called for help from donors in such a society.Some officers and employees of the police department, including Nashik residents, collected financial help and gave them a check of Rs 51,000. In addition, some other congregations in the community are coming forward to help them. She has acted in more than one blockbuster film like 'Nek Dil', 'Aparajita', 'Modern Girl'. He was also honored with many awards for his energetic acting. These include prestigious awards like 'Dadasaheb Phalke Golden Era'.


B'day Special: 'This' actress, who once owned billions, is living a miserable life in Nashik!