This actress left her husband, ran away with another man after many flop films, faced poverty, had to sleep on streets, spend nights on footpath, her name is..

There have been many actresses in Hindi cinema who have become very popular for playing negative roles. In this, the names of Lalita Pawar and Shashikala Saigal come to the fore in old-time cinema. Today, we will tell you not only about the professional journey that Shashikala undertook to succeed but also about the personal sacrifices she made along the way. Shashikala started her career in films in 1945 with the film Zeenat. For this film, she was paid just Rs 25. But Shashikala did not let the circumstances deter her and carved a unique identity for herself by playing side roles. 

Shashikala was active in the film world for 69 years and performed supporting roles in more than 100 films, but her personal life was always full of struggles. Shashikala, before entering the film industry, had to work as a sweeper in people's homes to earn money. 

Shashikala's father was a millionaire, and she enjoyed a luxurious life growing up, however, there came a time when the business suffered losses, and her father went bankrupt. After that, she also saw such days that she had to go to people's homes to work. The family, after losing their fortune, moved to Mumbai, where Shashikala started to do cleaning work. It was here that she met Noor Jehan, who asked her husband to get Shashikala a job in the film world. This is how Shashikala got her debut film, Zeenat. 

Shashikala thrived professionally, but her personal life began deteriorating. She was 19 when she got married to Om Prakash Saigal, who belonged to the Kundan Lal Saigal family. The couple had two daughters. 

Their rosy life soon became challenging as cracks started appearing in their marriage. Shashikala, in an interview, once revealed how she and Om Prakash had decided to send their daughters to a hostel because of their growing differences and fights. 

The fights and arguments between Shashikala and Om Prakash Saigal only worsened with time, which is when Shashikala separated from her husband and migrated to Australia for a few years with a new partner. 

In an interview, Shashikala spoke about this controversial decision that she took and revealed how that was one of the biggest regrets of her life. Shashikala mentioned how she suffered so much by eloping that after returning to Bombay again, she slept on pavements and roamed the streets of the city as she had nowhere to go. 

"Yes, destiny wasn't done with playing me a bad hand. Differences between my husband and me worsened when the kids were in boarding. That's when in a misguided moment straight out of my film Gumrah, I eloped with another man abroad, leaving behind my husband, kids, and career. It was the biggest mistake of my life for which I paid dearly. I was humiliated and tortured for days till I returned crazy and broken. For days, I roamed the streets like a mad woman, sleeping on pavements, eating what I could lay my hands on, touring ashrams and temples in search of peace," she said. 

Shashikala eventually dusted herself off and regained the limelight in the film industry with Satyavan Savitri. She worked in several hit films and TV shows over the years, becoming one of the most popular supporting actresses of her time. 

Shashikala tragically lost her eldest daughter, Rekha, to cancer in 1993. Her younger daughter is named Shailaja. She also has a granddaughter named Alpana who is based in Seattle, Washington. For the unversed, Shashikala Saigal died on April 4, 2021, at 88, due to old age.

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