This superstar was born to a famous courtesan and her third husband, but went on to give multiple blockbusters.
Nargis Dutt is regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Indian cinema history. The actress was on screen for a relatively short period, of around 20 years. But in just that time, she was able to carve out a legacy that establishes her as one of the greatest of all time. And Nargis did all this despite not having many priveleges growing up that we take for granted.
Nargis’ early life and career as child artiste
Nargis was born Fatima Rashid to Jaddanbai, one of the pioneers of Indian film music. Jaddanbani was a noted composer in the Indian film industry and one of the most tawaifs of her day. In fact, Jaddanbai’s mother and Nargis’ maternal grandmother Daleepabai was also a famous courtesan in the early 20th century. Nargis’ father was Mohanchand Uttamchand Tyagi, a Hindu businessman who converted to Islam and adopted the name of Abdul Rashid in order to marry Jaddanbai. This was Jaddanbai’s third wedding. Nargis, born in 1929, began her career at the age of 6 in her mother’s film Talashe Haq and appeared in a number of other films as child artiste till the age of 12.
Nargis’ career as a lead actress and superstardom
At 14, Nargis made the leap as a lead star in Mehboob Khan’s Taqdeer, which was a hit. Her next few films were moderately successful before she saw her first box office failures in the mid-1940s. From 1949-51, she starred in three blockbusters – Andaz, Barsaat, and Awaara – all of which broke the record of highest-grossing Indian film, all of which had Raj Kapoor opposite her. Nargis was now the number one heroine in the country. In 1957, she solidified her status with Mother India, the highest-grossing Indian film of that time. This was the first highest grosser in Indian cinema history led by a woman.
Why Nargis quit acting at 29
In 1958, Nargis married her Mother India co-star Sunil Dutt and gave up her career at her peak to settle down with her family. In 1967, Satyen Bose managed to convince her to return to acting one final time in the experimental and bold drama Raat Aur Din, for which she won her only National Award. In 1980, Nargis was nominated to the Rajya Sabha, but was diagnosed with cancer in the first year of her tenure. In 1981, at the age of 51, Nargis breathed her last. As per reports, she had been planning a comeback.
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