Kamini Kaushal dies at 98: Veteran actor’s career spanned from Neecha Nagar to Laal Singh Chaddha

Born as Uma Sood, Kamini told SCREEN in 2017 that she was “bullied” into the world of cinema after she finished her graduation in English honours from Lahore. “I was studying at Lahore’s Kinnaird College for Women then, and my first reaction was ‘no’. I had heard from somewhere that the film industry was not a good place for girls,” she had said.

As the leading lady of stars from Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand, she ruled over cinema at that point of time. It is said that Subodh Mukherjee, who headed Filmistan studio, turned down up and coming singer Lata Mangeshkar as he felt her “squeaky” voice wouldn’t suit Kamini Kaushal.

It was rumoured that Kamini and Dilip Kumar were in love with each other. But, Kamini married her brother-in-law since she had promised her dying sister that she would take care of her two daughters. She also worked with Raj Kapoor in his first film Jail Yatra in 1947, and later, was also a part of RK Films’ first film Aag. She once shared with PTI, “Each of my heroes were different from each other. Raj was very extrovert and always used to bluff a lot on the set. He was a fun-loving guy. Dev was sincere and passionate about his craft. Dilip, like me, was quiet and I was most comfortable to work with him. We did many films together.”

By the mid-60s, she transitioned to author-backed character parts that left a strong impact. She did Do Raaste (1969), Prem Nagar (1974) and Maha Chor (1976) in this phase. One of her memorable roles at the time was in Shaheed (1965) where she played the mother of Manoj Kumar, who was only 10 years younger to her.

Even after retiring from the world of movies, Kamini would make a rare appearance in films. She appeared in Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Chennai Express in 2013. She shared with SCREEN, “I couldn’t say no. I thought I must do a film with Shah Rukh.”