MADHUBALA:

Who doesn’t know her? The original diva. Strikingly beautiful. Great actress. Madhubala.



Born with the name of Mumtaz Jahan Begum Dehlavi, she would have been 77 today if alive. She died at the peak of her successful career at a very young age of 36. She was born with a hole in her heart, which could not be cured. Was advised a bed-rest and retirement from movies but she refused and continued working.She had a strong will to live but alas could not defeat death.




I recently read about her and was astonished, because all I associated with Madhubala earlier was a beautiful face, Mugal-E-Azam and Ek ladki bheegi-bhaagi se. but there is so much more to her.




Even though a fairly popular and successful actress, she saw a lot of lows in her life. Her fatal heart condition becoming a hindrance, her continuous flops which diminished and doomed her popularity, her break-up with fiancé and lover of 9 years Dilip Kumar, it is said that during the making of Mugal-e-Azam the duo has already broken-up and the most romantic, intimate scenes were filmed when the couple was not even in talking terms with each other..!!!



Madhubala later married Kishore Kumar after filming the movie Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi.



She however did not find any marital bliss, as soon after their honeymoon,Kishore Kumar came to know about her heart condition and left her at her parent's home. He came to visit her occasionally which further deteriorated her already worsening condition.



One of the biggest high came when Mugal-e-Azam released. Her popularity touched new horizons. Sadly she couldn’t bask in the glory of it as she was critically ill by then and totally bed-ridden. It is said that she used to tell her dad that when she will get well, she will demand as much money as she pleased post mugal-e-azam. But that was not to be. She breathed her last in 1969, when she was only 36.




Even though she is no more, she continues to live inside our hearts and in the movies. No one will ever be able to take her place. She was a girl, a women, a seductress, who can ever forget the cabre girl of aayeye meherbaaa



or the fearless women of pyaar kiya to darna kya. The arched eyebrows, mesmerising eyes and that side-way smile. She expressed all emotions with her face. Not needing to don a bikini to look sexy! The current brigade needs to learn something.

Ek ladki bheegi-bhaagi se…. can’t take this song out of my mind neither her face. Such is the magic of her!