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Sharmila Tagore is one of the iconic veteran actresses of the Indian Cinema. In 2013, she became the recipient of Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India for her contribution to the Indian Cinema.
Wiki/Biography
Sharmila Tagore was born on 8 December 1944 (age 79 years; as of 2023) in Hyderabad. Her zodiac sign is Sagittarius. She spent some of her early years in Kolkata. Sharmila attended Loreto Convent, Asansol, West Bengal and St. John’s Diocesan Girls’ Higher Secondary School, Kolkata. She was not good at studies, her attendance level was very low and she was also regarded as a bad influence on her classmates. When she was 13 years old, she received an offer for a film and was given a choice of either doing films or studying further. At that time, her father advised her to commit herself to her film career in order to become successful.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5’ 4”
Weight (approx.): 55 kg
Hair Colour: Dark Brown
Eye Colour: Dark Brown
Family, Caste & Husband
Sharmila Tagore was born into a Brahmin Family but she converted to Islam just before her marriage. She is the daughter of Gitindranath Tagore and Ira Baruah. She has two sisters namely Romila Sen (Chinky Tagore) and late Oindrila Kunda (Tinku Tagore). Sharmila is the great-granddaughter of the famous poet Rabindra Nath Tagore.
Sharmila Tagore’s great-grandfather, Rabindranath Tagore
Sharmila met Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi at an after match party in 1965. The duo dated for a few years before getting married on 27 December 1969. Her husband was the Nawab of Pataudi and former captain of the Indian cricket team. He died on 22 September 2011. She has a son, Saif Ali Khan, an actor and two daughters, Saba Ali Khan and Soha Ali Khan, an actress. Sharmila is the mother-in-law of the Bollywood actress, Kareena Kapoor.
Sharmila Tagore with her husband, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi
Sharmila Tagore with her son, Saif Ali Khan
Sharmila Tagore with her daughter, Saba Ali Khan
Sharmila Tagore with her daughter, Soha Ali Khan
Sharmila Tagore with her husband and children
Sharmila Tagore with her daughter-in-law, Kareena Kapoor Khan
Sharmila Tagore with her family
The Bollywood actor Kunal Khemu is her son-in-law. She is the grandmother of Ibrahim Ali Khan, Sara Ali Khan, and Taimur Ali Khan.
Sharmila Tagore with her daughter, Soha Ali Khan and son-in-law, Kunal Khemu
Sharmila Tagore’s granddaughter, Sara Ali Khan
Sharmila Tagore’s grandson, Ibrahim Ali Khan
Sharmila Tagore with her grandson, Taimur Ali Khan
Career
Tagore started her acting career in 1959 with Satyajit Ray’s Bengali film “Apur Sansar.” Her Bollywood debut came with Shakti Samanta’s romance drama “Kashmir Ki Kali” in 1964. In 1967, Tagore did a film titled “An Evening in Paris” in which she wore a bikini. She also posed in a bikini for the glossy Filmfare Magazine in 1968.
Kashmir Ki Kali
Subsequently, she was paired opposite Rajesh Khanna and gave 7 commercial successes including “Aradhana,” “Safar,” “Amar Prem,” “Chhoti Bahu,” “Daag,” “Raja Rani,” and “Avishkaar.” She even paired opposite Dharmendra to give box office hits like “Devar” (1966), “Anupama” (1966), “Mere Hamdam Mere Dost” (1968), “Satyakam” (1969), “Yakeen” (1969), “Chupke Chupke” (1975), “Ek Mahal Ho Sapno Ka” (1975) and “Sunny” (1984). Tagore was one of the highest paid actresses of Bollywood in the 1970s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6KC-NQmeI6g
Sharmila handled the Indian Film Censor Board between October 2004 and March 2011. She was also chosen as the Goodwill Ambassador of the UNICEF. At the 2009 Cannes Film Festival, Sharmila served as one of the International Competition’s Jury Members.
Sharmila Tagore as the Jury Member at Cannes 2009
In 2017, Tagore walked the ramp for Designer Rohini Gugnani at India Runway Week as a showstopper.
Sharmila Tagore graced the ramp for Rohini Gugnani
Awards
- Filmfare Award for Best Actress for the film Aradhana (1970)
Sharmila Tagore receiving Filmfare Award
- National Film Award for Best Actress for the film Mausam (1975)
- Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award (1998)
- Lifetime Achievement Award by the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (2017)
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Sharmila Tagore honoured with Lifetime Achievement award
- National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for the film Abar Aranye (2003)
- Padma Bhushan awarded by the Government of India (2013)
Sharmila Tagore receiving the Padma Bhushan from the President of India
- Critics’ Choice Award for Best Actor (Female) for the film ‘Gulmohar’ at the Filmfare OTT Awards (26 November 2023)
Favourite Things
- Actors: Sanjeev Kumar, Shashi Kapoor, Rajesh Khanna, Dharmendra
Sharmila Tagore with Sashi Kapoor
- Destinations: France, South Africa
- Food: Bengali Cuisine
Sharmila Tagore having food
- Restaurant: Bukhara in Delhi
Facts
- Her hobbies include shopping, gardening, reading books, and listening to music.
- Sharmila’s younger sister, Oindrila, was the first member of her family to feature in a film. The only role that her sister ever played was that of ‘Mini’ in Tapan Sinha’s film “Kabuliwala” (1957).
- Tagore became the first Indian actress to appear in a bikini when she wore it for the film “An Evening in Paris” (1967). It established her as a sex symbol in Hindi films.
Sharmila Tagore in a bikini
- Sharmila changed her name to Begum Ayesha Sultana and converted to Islam before tying the knot with Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. However, she and her family never used that name.
Sharmila Tagore’s marriage picture
- In November 2012, just after the death of her husband Mansoor Ali, Sharmila wrote to the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) asking them to recognise the then-upcoming series between India and England as the Pataudi Trophy.