Actor Kamini Kaushal, one of Hindi cinema’s earliest female stars who began her career with the classic Neecha Nagar in 1946 and went on to act in a host of films right till 2022, has died in her Mumbai home, a close family friend said. She was 98.
Amongst the industry’s highest paid actress in the late 1940s and early 1950s, Kaushal starred opposite the triumvirate of Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor before moving on to character roles in the 1960s.
Her last screen appearance was in Aamir Khan’s 2022 film Laal Singh Chaddha at the age of 95, making for a remarkable 76 year in the movies.
“She died at her Mumbai home late on Thursday night. She would have turned 99 in February,” Sajan Narain, a close friend of the family, told PTI.
Kaushal was born Uma Kashyap on February 24, 1927 in Lahore. The youngest of two brothers and three sisters, Kaushal graduated with a degree in English literature from Government College in Lahore.
The movie career happened when family friend and filmmaker Chetan Anand approached her for his 1946 film Neecha Nagar. The movie, where she acted opposite actor Rafiq Anwar and Anand’s wife Uma, won the Grand Prix du Festival International du Film at the inaugural Cannes Film Festival in 1946.
As the news of her death came in, many people took to social media to post tributes. “We pay tribute to the versatile and multifaceted Kamini Kaushal ji whose captivating performances have enthralled millions in a career spanning over seven decades.
Condolences to the family,” the official X handle of Producers Guild of India. (PTI)
