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Bindu, Arshad Warsi, and Babita, three well-known Aries actors, whose birthdays are in the coming week, have one thing in common. All of them had to face difficult situations. While Bindu and Arshad lost their fathers as teenagers, Babita was in the midst of controversies. She separated from her husband and brought up her two actor daughters, Karishma and Kareena, single-handedly, as a gutsy mother. All three of them emerged victorious despite many hardships. Smriti profiles these three actors, in the regular column, exclusively in Different Truths.
Bindu lost her father when she was barely 13-year girl, while Arshad Warsi was orphaned when he was just 14-year-old. Despite all odds, they became successful actors, in their own rights. Bindu was known for her negative roles, as a successful vamp, and was a successful cabaret dancer too. Arshad, a successful dancer, received the coveted Filmfare Award for his comic role. Both of them have portrayed sensitive characters as actors. Babita, a star in her own rights, was in the midst of many controversies. She separated from her husband, Randhir Kapoor, and brought up her two actor daughters, single-handedly, rebelling against the Kapoor household where women do not act in films. All three Aries actors, whose birthdays are in the coming week, had to fight against difficult circumstances. They fought bravely. Emerged victorious.
Bindu: Svelte, Sexy Vamp and a Sensitive Actor
Who can forget the svelte, sexy “Mona Darling” of underworld don Teja, in the movie, Zanjeer or the sexy cabaret dancer in the song, “Mera naam shabnam…”?
Born on 17th April 1951, to a Gujarati speaking Desai family, Bindu gave new dimensions to the Bollywood vamp. Her father, Nanubhai was a film producer and her mother, Jyotsana, was a stage actress.
Bindu lost her father when she was just 13, leaving her the sole earner of the family. She has acted in more than 160 movies in a career, which, started in 1962, from the movie, Anpadh, in which she played Mala Sinha’s daughter.
Films like Ittefaq and Do Raaste gave her the much-needed success and recognition, but it was her mesmerising dance in the film, Kati Patang, which took the screen by storm and her role in the movie typecast her as a vamp. She enthralled the audiences by her roles in movies like Imtihaan, in which, she played the role of a student, who tries to seduce her teacher, and, her portrayal of a nymphomaniac in Hawas.
Bindu, with a string of hits, broke the myth that married woman cannot become sex symbols. She along with Helen and Aruna Irani, formed the famous trio, who defined Bollywood cabaret dance and the role of a vamp.
But, Bindu is just not remembered for her vamp characters. She played many sensitive and positive characters like in Abhimaan, a crippled woman in Chaitali, or a deglamorised wife to Ashok Kumar in Arjun Pandit.
Though nominated many times, unfortunately, this talented actress never won an award. But she will always be remembered as a seductress, a vamp, a stern mother-in-law, a dancer and above all an excellent actor.
Arshad Warsi: A Sensitive Actor with Great Comic Timing
Amitabh Bachchan Corporation’s first production, Tere Mere Sapne, in 1996 gave a very talented actor to the film industry, Arshad Warsi. The movie was a box office success and a star was born. But this success had many years of struggle behind it.
Arshad was born on 19th April 1968, in Mumbai. His father was an accomplished harmonium player and an assistant to music director Ghulam Haider.
Unfortunately, Arshad was orphaned at the age of 14 and his struggle for survival started. He worked as a salesman, doing door to door selling of cosmetics and even worked in a photo lab. However, his keen interest in dancing got him an offer to join Akbar Sami’s dance group in Mumbai. This gave a head start to 
his dancing and choreography career. His dancing skills won him the Indian Dance competition and the fourth prize in Modern Jazz category in World Dance championship, in 1992. Motivated by these successes, Arshad started his dance studio, ‘Awesome’, and formed a dance troupe. He even assisted Mahesh Bhatt in Thikana and Kaash, and even choreographed the title track of the film Roop Ki Raani, Choron Ka Raaja.
Arshad starred in many box office failures post-Tere Mere Sapne, until 2003, when his role of “Circuit,” a sidekick to “Munnabhai” in Raju Hirani’s, Munna Bhai MBBS gained him critical acclaim and huge box office success. His role of Circuit won him the Zee Cine Award for the best actor in a comic role. From here on Arshad went on to star in many hit films, even got the GIFA best comedian award for Hulchul in 2004. His comic timing led him to a collaboration with Rohit Shetty for Golmal: Fun Unlimited in 2006, and ever since he is an integral part of this super hit series. He appeared in many other comedy films, one of which was Lagey Raho Munnabha, which won him his first Filmfare Award for best performance in a comic role.
It’s not that Arshad played only comic roles. This actor showed his versatility by acting in different genres of films, like the counter-terrorism drama, Kabul Express; Seher, in which he played a cop or the black comedyIshqiya for which he won the Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor.
But his most widely acclaimed and first solo hit was Jolly LLB, which also won him many awards. The film also got the National Award for the Best Feature film.
Besides acting in films, he worked on television also, where he hosted shows and worked in a serial with Karishma Kapoor.
Right now he is happily married to Maria Goretti, with two adorable children. He has many upcoming good movies in the near future, and, is also going to judge a reality show on television, Sabse Bada Kalakar. But, unfortunately, he is the most underutilised and underrated actor of his time.
Babita: A Star and a Gutsy Single Mother
Today’s generation knows her as a mother of Karishma and Kareena Kapoor, but she was a star in her own rights in her young age.
Babita Kapoor was born to a Sindhi father and a British Christian mother on 20th April 1948. Her father was actor Hari Shivdasani and she was also related to her contemporary actress Sadhna.
Her first movie offer was for the film Dus Lakh by G.P. Sippy but her first release was Raaj, which was also the debut of Rajesh Khanna. The film did not perform very well at the box office, but her next film Farz, with Jeetendra, was a huge hit, and the leading pair became stars. This was just the beginning for Babita. She acted in many hit films thereafter, which included, Kal Aaj Aur Kal, which then also starred her future husband Randheer Kapoor. The biggest hit of her career was Haseena Maan Jaayegi, with her future uncle-in-law, Shashi Kapoor.
In November 1971, Babita married Randhir Kapoor, and, retired from acting as per the tradition of Kapoor family, where women did not work in films. Despite a short span of her career in films, Babita was a fashion inspiration for millions of girls. Her tight churidars, large hoop earrings, and glasses became a fashion rage.
Many controversies surrounded Babita’s family life. She had a troubled marriage and strained relations with Neetu Kapoor, wife of the younger brother of Randhir, Rishi Kapoor. She separated from her husband and brought up her daughters singlehandedly. Defying the family tradition she encouraged her daughters to make their careers in acting and both of them turned out to be very successful.
©Smriti Maheshwari
Photos from the internet.
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