Golden era actress admitted to prostitution in court after IT raid at her house; later claimed she lied to get her ‘black money’ back

Mala Sinha made her debut with the 1954 film Badshah. (Photo: Express Archives)

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The incident was shared by Tabassum on her YouTube channel where she spoke about their long standing friendship and recalled what Mala told her when asked about the “most difficult phase of her life.” She recalled Mala saying that she was one of the most popular actors of her era and had made lots of money during her time in the movies. She recalled Mala’s words and said, “I made all kinds of money – white and black.” This meant that Mala was not declaring a sum of her income to the tax department.

Tabassum further recalled Mala’s words, “Out of the black money I made, my father hid Rs 12 lakh in the bathroom. But the Income tax officials got to know about it and conducted a raid at my house, dismantled the bathroom and took away the Rs 12 lakh back in 1978. I was completely broken.”

Mala Sinha (centre) with Dharmendra (left) and Asha Parekh (right). (Photo: Express Archives)

Afterwards, Mala’s father, Albert Sinha, filed a case demanding their money back as it was “my hard-earned money.” “But the lawyers said that you won’t get this money back because this is black money. My father got worried and asked if there was another way. The lawyers said there was only one way, ‘If Mala shows up in court and admits that films are not the only way to make money, there are other means to make money as well. And this is my personal income’,” she recalled, suggesting that Mala had to admit to something that she never did. Tabassum recalled, “Mala Sinha said, ‘I said this in court and I got my Rs 12 lakh back but I will always regret that I admitted to something that I never did’.”

Mala Sinha did not appear in many films after this scandal.