This actress, who was labelled as B-grade actress, heroes refused to work with her, quit films at 27.
Many actors in Bollywood have started their careers at a young age and then went on to become stars. One such actress who started her career at the age of 11, became one of the highest-paid stars in the industry and gave several hits. The actress we are talking about survived breast cancer and is considered to be one of the finest actors in the industry.
The actress was one labelled as a B-grade actress but that didn't stop her from working in over 100 films in her career. However, she later quit the film industry at the early age of 27. She is none other than Mumtaz.
Mumtaz started her career at the age of 11 with Sone Ki Chidiya in 1958, and did small roles in films like Stree and Sehra. Her first role as an adult was in O. P. Ralhan's Gehra Daag. She then got small roles in hits like Mujhe Jeene Do. However, later, she played lead actress in 16 action films, including Faulad, Veer Bhimsen, Tarzan Comes to Delhi, Sikandar-E-Azam, Rustom-E-Hind, Raaka, and Daku Mangal Singh, with Dara Singh, and was labelled as a stunt-film heroine.
Mumtaz then worked in movies like Ram Aur Shyam, Mere Hamdam Mere Dost, and Brahmachari, in which her performances were much appreciated. Her breakthrough film came with Do Raaste after which she established herself as one of the leading actresses with films such as Bandhan, Aadmi Aur Insaan, Sacha Jhutha, Khilona, Tere Mere Sapne, and Hare Rama Hare Krishna among others.
Her pairing with Rajesh Khanna was the most successful, with a total of 10 films. She also starred with Shashi Kapoor, Dharmendra and Feroz Khan in several films. However, at the age of 27, the actress quit films after the drama Aaina in 1977 as she got married to Mayur Madhvani and wanted to concentrate on her family. She did make a comeback in 1990 with the film Aandhiyan but retired when the movie flopped.
The actress recently in an interview revealed that she was once labeled as a B-grade actress and that no one wanted to work with her but Ram Aur Shyam with Dilip Kumar acted as a turning point of her career. Speaking to DawnNews, she said, “I was given the label of a B-grade actor because I did a lot of small roles. I also did comedy with Mehboob sahab. I just closed my eyes and did work. I thought the rest is in god’s hands. My start in the film industry was wrong. I won’t blame the heroes for not working with me because everybody wants to climb the ladder of success. But Mehboob sahab showed one of my scenes to Dilip Kumar sahab and asked him if he would work with me in Ram Aur Shyam. He told him that the girl was nice and he agreed. Dilip sahab was a very down-to-earth person.”
The actress was considered a sex symbol and was reportedly the highest-paid actress charging Rs 2.5 lakh for her role in movies in the late 1960s to early 1970s. The actress settled in London with her husband after she quit films and has two daughters of which Natasha got married to Feroz Khan's son Fardeen Khan in 2006. The actress was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 54. She reportedly underwent six chemotherapies and 35 radiation sessions before becoming cancer-free.
Read Salman Khan praises Mumtaz 'aunty' as she dances to Aajkal Tere Mere Pyar Ke
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 "This actress quit films at the age of 27")
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