Purnima (Hindi actress)
Purnima Das Verma[1] | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Purnima in 1956 | |
| Born | Meher Bano[1] 2 March 1932 Bombay, British India |
| Died | 14 August 2013 (aged 81) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1947-1986 |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 1 |
| Parent | Ram Sheshadri Ayangar (father) |
| Relatives | Bhatt family[2] |
Purnima Das Varma (born Meher Bano; 2 March, 1932 — 14 August, 2013) was an Indian actress who worked predominantly in Hindi-language films.[3][4][1] She was the aunt of director Mahesh Bhatt and grandmother of actor Emraan Hashmi.
Personal life
As per her interview to film journalist and historian Shishir Krishna Sharma of Beete Hue Din blog who had interviewed her during the 2000s, Purnima was born on 2 March 1932 in Bombay (now Mumbai). Her father Ram Sheshadri Ayangar was a Tamil Brahmin who used to handle accounts at film distributor Kikubhai Desai's (father of filmmaker Manmohan Desai) office. Her mother was from Muslim family of Lucknow. Purnima had four sisters and a brother. Her elder sister, Shirin, is the second wife of filmmaker Nanabhai Bhatt and mother of directors Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt.[5] During the 1930s, Shirin had worked in films viz. Bambai Ki Sethani (1935), Passing Show (1936), Khwab Ki Duniya (1937), State Express (1938) and Bijli (1939). Shirin was the person who gave the screen name 'Purnima' to Meher Bano. Meher Bano had first got married at very early age. Her first husband was a journalist named Syed Shauqat Hashmi, who moved to Pakistan during the partition of India after separating from her. Her son from this first marriage, Anwar Hashmi (father of Emraan Hashmi), acted in Baharon Ke Manzil (1968) opposite Farida Jalal.[1] In 1954, she got married for the second time, to filmmaker, Bhagwan Das Varma, a man 25 years older than her and, who too was getting married the second time. This marriage lasted till his death in 1962. She was a close friend of Dulari, Shakila and Saira Banu. She said, "I am most proud of the fact that today my grandson (Emraan Hashmi) has become a star in front of my eyes and nothing makes me prouder than the fact that people don't know me as Purnima but instead, they know me as Star Emraan Hashmi's grandmother."[3][4]
Career
According to Purnima herself, filmmaker Raman B. Desai, who used to be their neighbor, had offered the role of Radha to Purnima in his Gujarati film Radheshyam, while she was still studying in school. The film was released in the year 1938 when she was 16 years old. Regarding her Hindi film career, she said Purnima, "My first Hindi film was Kidar Sharma's Thes (1948) where I was playing the second lead." However, according to the senior film historian Harish Raghuvanshi, two of Purnima's Hindi films Manager and Tum Aur Mai we're released in the year 1947 itself. Besides, in 1948, she also had acted in the Gujarati film Saavaki Maa of filmmaker Raja Yagnik. In 1949, she again worked with Raman B. Desai in the Hindi-Gujarati bilingual film Narad Muni. She, however, got her first success in Hindi films with the film Patanga (1949) where two of the songs "Dil Se Bhula Do Tum Humein" and "O Jaanewale Tune Armaanon Ki Duniya Loot Li" made her immensely popular. This film was made under the Varma Films banner, owned and founded by her future second husband Bhagwan Das Varma. then worked as a heroine and second lead in about 20 films which includes Kidar Sharma's Jogan (1950), Amiya Chakravarty's Gauna (1950) and Badal (1951), H. S. Rawail's Sagai (1951) and Shagufa (1953), Guru Dutt's Jaal (1952), B. R. Chopra's Shole (1953), Ramanand Sagar's Mehmaan (1953) and Bhagwan Das Varma's Aurat (1953) and Pooja (1954) whom, she married and temporarily bid adieu to acting in 1954. However, the financial conditions post their marriage kept detoriating and to stabilize the same, she again resumed her acting career. She said, "Our condition was such that I had to even sell my own bungalow. This was the same place where Vijay Anand's Navketan Studio stands." She said, "The second innings of my career started with the 1957 film Chamak Chandni which was a costume drama. Because my main aim was to earn money, I did whatever work that came my way. I did many good-bad films like Baghi Sipahi, Jang Bahadur, Post Box 999, Son of Sindbad (all 1958), Jawani Ki Hawa, Kangan, Madam XYZ (all 1959), College Girl, Gambler (both 1960) as the main or second lead and then slowly and steadily I just didn't realize how I had become a character artist". In dozens of films like Budtameez (1966), Humjoli (1970), Mera Gaon Mera Desh (1971), Zanjeer (1973), Khoon Pasina (1977), Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki (1978), Kaalia (1981), Dharam Kanta (1982), Inquilaab (1984) etc. she worked as a character artist. According to her, she worked in almost 200 films. In her later years she played a role in Ajay Devgan's debut film Phool Aur Kaante, and the role of Sanjay Dutt's on-screen grandmother, in Naam which was directed by Mahesh Bhatt.[6] She also played the role of Amitabh Bachchan's mother, in the film Zanjeer.
Death
Purnima had Alzheimer's disease during the last few years of her life and died on 14 August, 2013 at the age of 81 in Mumbai.[1][7] Mahesh Bhatt later revealed on Twitter, "My aunt Purnima, the first star of our family and who happens to be Emraan Hashmi's grandmother has entered the sunset moments of her life."[8]
Selected filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | Manager | ||
| 1948 | Radheshya (Gujarati) | Radha | |
| Saavaki Maa (Gujarati) | |||
| Thes | |||
| 1949 | Narad Muni (Hindi and Gujarati) | ||
| Patanga | Purnima | ||
| 1950 | Gauna | ||
| Jogan | Anjani | ||
| 1951 | Badal | Maina | |
| Sagai | Shahzadi | ||
| 1952 | Jaal | Lisa | |
| 1953 | Aurat | Ruhi | |
| Mehmaan | |||
| Shagufa | |||
| Shole | |||
| 1954 | Pooja | ||
| 1956 | Rajdhani | Phool Kanwar Singh | |
| 1957 | Chamak Chandni | ||
| 1958 | Baghi Sipahi | Palace slave | |
| Jang Bahadur | |||
| Post Box 999 | Bindiya | ||
| Son of Sindbad | |||
| 1959 | Jawani Ki Hawa | Sandhya | |
| Kangan | Kamala | ||
| Madam XYZ | |||
| 1960 | College Girl | Janaki | |
| Gambler | |||
| 1966 | Budtameez | Reeta | |
| 1970 | Humjoli | Roopa Rai | |
| 1971 | Banphool | Nirmala | |
| 1973 | Zanjeer | Sumitra Khanna | |
| 1977 | Khoon Pasina | ||
| 1978 | Ganga Ki Saugand | ||
| Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki | Thakur Rajnath Singh Chauhan's mother | ||
| 1981 | Hum Se Badkar Kaun | Radha | |
| Kaalia | Shalini's stepmother | ||
| Khara Khota | |||
| Poonam | |||
| 1982 | Dharam Kanta | Thakur Harnam Singh's wife | |
| 1984 | Inquilaab | Amarnath's aunt | |
| Yaadgaar | Parvati "Paro" | ||
| 1986 | Naam | Grandmother of Ravi Kapoor and Vicky Kapoor | Directed by nephew Mahesh Bhatt |
| Sadaa Suhagan | Nirmala "Daayi Maa" | ||
| 1991 | Phool Aur Kaante | Ajay Salgaonkar's paternal grandmother |
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 Bollywoodirect (13 August 2018). "Remembering yesteryear Hindi film actress Purnima on her 5th death anniversary". Medium. Medium. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
- ↑ "My wife and my audience, both took time to understand me: Emraan Hashmi - Times of India". The Times of India. 16 June 2013.
- 1 2 "Emraan Hashmi shares a beautiful picture of his grandmother, actress Purnima, on her death anniversary". timesnownews.com. India: Times Now. 14 August 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
- 1 2 "Emraan Hashmi's grandmother passes away - Times of India". The Times of India. India. 15 August 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
- ↑ "ETimes BFFs: Did you know Faraaz producer Sahil Saigal is Alia Bhatt's cousin? Check out the long and complicated filmy lineage of the Bhatts!". The Times of India. 10 November 2023.
- ↑ "Emraan Hashmi's grandmother passes away - Times of India". The Times of India. 15 August 2013. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
- ↑ "कभी बॉलीवुड पर राज करती थी ये एक्ट्रेस, आर्थिक तंगी के कारण घर तक पड़ा था बेचना". amarujala.com. 14 August 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2021.
- ↑ Mahesh Bhatt [@MaheshNBhatt] (14 August 2013). "My aunt Poornima, the first star of our family & who happens to be Emraan Hashmi's grandmother has entered the sunset moments of her life" (Tweet) – via Twitter.