Smita Patil, born on 17 October 1955 was an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. Patil appeared in over 80 Hindi and Marathi films in a career that spanned just over a decade. During her career, she received two National Film Awards and a Filmfare Award. She was the recipient of the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honour in 1985.
Her first tryst with the camera was in the 1970s as a television newscaster on Mumbai Doordarshan, when Shyam Benegal discovered her. Her work includes films with parallel cinema directors like Shyam Benegal, Govind Nihalani, G. Aravindan and Mrinal Sen as well as forays into the more commercial Hindi film industry cinema of Mumbai. Her performances were often acclaimed, and her most notable roles include Manthan (1977), Bhumika (1977), Chakra (1981), Arth (1982) Chidambaram (1985) and Mirch Masala (1985).
Smita Patil comes across as an artiste with a thousand expressions in Manthan. As Bindu, one moment she leaves you speechless with a tongue-lashing she gives to Girish Karnad’s Dr. Manohar Rao who has come to collect a milk sample for the cooperative dairy project. Another moment, she is all simmering sensuality as she bathes outside her hut. Dressed in a one piece, off-shoulder gown — a lecherous old man looks, greed written over his face — she conveys it all with not a single line, no pouting lips, and no suggestive camera angles.
This facet of Smita is also brought out in one of her earliest movies Shyam Benegal’s Bhumika. The adaptation of Marathi actress Hansa Wadkar’s life was again as much an exploration of the whimsical ways of showbiz as much as it was a voyage into a woman’s troubled journey. Barely 22, her portrayal mirrored the acute insecurities of women taking a stance without being unnecessary judgmental. Bhumika is as empowering as its moving.
In Rabindra Dharmaraj’s Chakra she tries to grapple a combative son and her various paramours. Smita’s body language and sadness was as much a reflection of the sordid squalor in the slums as it was about the moral squalor in relationships.
In Mahesh Bhatt’s Arth, one can experience the pain when you see her character of Kavita Sanyal begging Pooja (Shabana Azmi) to leave Inder (Kulbushan Kharbanda )
As Muniyadi’s wife Shivkami in Chidambaram, a Malayalam movie, she moves from the brown, barren landscape of Tamilnadu to the green, undulating meadows of the farm immediately after her marriage and wonders at the colourful surroundings, and her expressions of wonder and joy are priceless.
Her arguably greatest (and unfortunately final) role came when Smita teamed with Ketan Mehta to play the feisty and fiery Sonbai in Mirch Masala. Smita won raves for playing a spirited spice-factory worker who stands up against a lecherous petty official.
Patil was married to actor Raj Babbar. She died on 13 December 1986 at the age of 31 due to childbirth complications. Over ten of her films were released after her death. Her son Prateik Babbar is a film actor who made his debut in 2008.
On the centenary of Indian cinema in April 2013, Forbes included her performance in the film on its list, "25 Greatest Acting Performances of Indian Cinema". In 2011, Rediff.com listed her as the second-greatest actress of all time, behind Nargis. On the occasion of 100 years of the Indian cinema, a postage stamp bearing her face was released by India Post to honour her on 3 May 2013.
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