‘Mother India’ actress Nargis Dutt’s true name, do you know?

The late Nargis Dutt was a classic example of a vintage heroine in Hindi film. One of the most prominent actors of her day, Nargis typically portrayed intelligent, smart, and independent female characters. For her extensive body of writing, which combined literary drama and screwball comedy, she won several awards. In Mother India, she portrayed one of the most powerful women in Hindi film. She was driven to popularity by other films like Shri 420 starring Raj Kapoor. The timeless melody Pyar Hua Ikrar Hua amid the rain has won over listeners of all ages.

Did you know that she went by the name Nargis? She was born Fatima Rashid in Kolkata. At the age of six, she made her film debut as a child actor in the 1935 film Talashe Haq, when she was given the role of Baby Nargis. The Narcissus blossom is referred to as “Nargis” in Persian. After that, she went by the name Nargis in all of her movies.

Nargis appeared in additional films after her debut. In 1943, when she was barely 14 years old, she appeared in Mehboob Khan’s Taqdeer as Motilal’s co-star. She garnered a lot of praise for her work, and the film was a financial success. Filmindia described it as “an excellent debut”.

Nargis played the starring role in the 1944 film Anban, after Taqdeer. She starred with Ashok Kumar, the best actor of the day, in the 1945 historical drama Humayun, and then came the mythical film Ramayani. In 1946, she appeared in Nargis. These movies were only moderately successful. She worked with Raj Kapoor on the 1948 drama Aag, in which she portrays a destitute woman who becomes an actress, and it was their first time working together. Mother India, in which she portrayed the mother of her real-life husband Sunil Dutt, was her most popular film.

For his contributions to the cinema business, she was also given the Padma Shri honor.

On May 2, 1981, Nargis Dutt passed away from pancreatic cancer, barely one week before Rocky, the directorial debut of her son Sanjay Dutt.