Sharmila Tagore, also known as Begum Ayesha Sultana, is a famous Indian film actress. From October 2004 to March 2011, she led the Indian Film Censor Board. She was selected as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador in December 2005. She was also one of the jury members of the International Competition at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival.
Sharmila Tagore was born on 8 December 1946 in Hyderabad. She married the former captain of the Indian cricket team Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi in 1969. The couple has three children: Saif Ali Khan, Saba Ali Khan, and Soha Ali Khan. She is a distant relative of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore.
Sharmila Tagore made her debut in Satyajit Ray's film Apur Sansar, the last of the Apu Trilogy. She was just fourteen years old when she played the role of young wife Aparna in the film. Even though she didn't have any previous experience in acting, she performed so well that Ray casted her in his next film Devi. She acted in few other Ray's films - Nayak, Aranyer Din Ratri and Seemabaddha.
In 1964, Sharmila Tagore performed in Shakti Samanta's Kashmir Ki Kali, which instantly made her a star actress of Bollywood. Samanta later casted her in many hit films such as An Evening in Paris (1967),Aradhana (1969), Amar Prem (1971), etc. Samanta paired her with Rajesh Khanna who became a very successful couple of Bollywood at that time.
Sharmila Tagore's Aradhana was one of her most memorable films. Few of her notable films include Amanush, Mausam, Anand Ashram and New Delhi Times. This Bengali actress stole the heart of millions with her almond-shaped eyes and beauty. Sharmila Tagore has worked with some of the celebrated actors of that era like Dharmendra, Manoj Kumar, Shashi Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, Jeetendra, Sanjeev Kumar, Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan. Some of her notable movies are Aradhana (1970), Choti Bahu, Daag, Safar, Amar Prem (Rajesh Khanna), Mausam (Sanjeev Kumar), Faraar (Amitabh Bachchan), Mere Humsafar (Jeetendra), Mere Humdam Mere Dost (Dharmendra), and An Evening in Paris (Shammi Kapoor).
Sharmila Tagore received many awards, to name a few:
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