Main source:wikipedia
Born: 25 December 1926, Jhelum, Pakistan
Died: 9 December 2008, Mumbai
Begum Para was born on Christmas day 1926 in Jehlum
Begum Para's father Mian Ehsan-ul-Haq of Jalandhar was a
judge who joined the princely state of Bikaner, now northern Rajasthan, where
he became chief justice of its highest court.
Begum Para was active mostly in the 1940s and 1950s. Her
first movie was the 1944 Prabhat production, Chaand, with Prem Adib playing her
lead. This was followed by Chhamia a year later and then in quick succession:
Shalimar and Sohni Mahniwal (1946), Duniya Ek Sarai,Lutera, Mehndi, Neel Kamal
and Zanjeer (1947), Jharna, Shaahnaaz and Kidar Sharma’sSohag Raat (1948), Dada
(1949), Meharbaani (1950), Ustad Pedro (1951), Laila Majnu, Naya Ghar (1953),
Aadmi (1957) and Do Mastaane (1958). The three movies, Dada, Dara and Ustad
Pedro starred Sheikh Mukhtar, the Anthony Quinn of Indian cinema, who played a
Bombay street lord, with the T-shirt-wearing, ebullient Begum Para as his
sidekick. These three movies were great hits.
As happens in the hard-hearted
world called the movies, Begum Para’s star was setting as new and different
kinds of actresses, with more dramatic talent than looks, had emerged. Begum
Para retired gracefully and never looked back. Everyone had forgotten who she
was when, in 2007, she agreed to make her last movie, Sanwarya. She was very
ill by then and would come to the set in a wheelchair but stay all day without
showing any complaint. She would regale the cast with stories that dated back
half a century, long, long before any of her listeners was born.
She married actor Nasir Khan, the younger brother of
Bollywood actor Dilip Kumar. They had three children, including the actor Ayub
Khan. Her husband died in 1974. Following her husband's death, she briefly
migrated to Pakistan in 1975. Two years later, she relocated to India. She died
in her sleep on 9 December 2008.
Begum Para was one of
Bollywood's most bold actresses during the 1950s. Taking a look back at her
life and works, here are some little known facts about her;
Begum Para was married to Nasir Khan, Dilip Kumar's brother.
They have a son Ayub Khan who is also an actor. Para's niece, Rukhsana Sultana
was Amrita Singh's mother. Amrita Singh, who is Saif Ali Khan's ex-wife, is
also Khushwant Singh's niece. After marrying Kareena Kapoor, Saif now has
family roots on both sides, as Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor shared a close
familial relationship.
Begum Para was way ahead of her time. She was widely known
for her boldness. In one of her interviews, she had said, "I have millions
of memories from those days. I didn't smoke as I never liked it. But, I did
drink even when it was considered taboo. I used to hold a glass of whisky
openly, unlike other actresses who mixed whisky in colas and pretended that
they were teetotalers."
Para had close friends in the industry. While reminiscing,
Para had said, "I miss my friends Nargis, Geeta Bali, Nadira, Shyama and
Nilofer. We used to often meet and paint the town red. I'm also getting old now
so telephone is the only way to communicate."
No one will disagree that here was a woman who lived life on
her own terms and brought sunshine into the lives of millions of her fans,
including those American GIs in Korea who would stick her picture on the cover
of Life in their bunkers.http://www.rediff.com/movies/nov/29para.htm
https://www.outlookindia.com/magazine/story/begum-para/203606
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