Shabana Azmi (English: Shabana Azmi, born- 18 September, 1950, Hyderabad, India) is a famous actress of English cinema. She is such a seasoned actress who molds herself in the same mold as per every role. She has played various roles in English films. She is still active in films. Apart from being an actress, Shabana Azmi is also equally involved in social work. Shabana Azmi is the wife of famous actor of English cinema Javed Akhtar. In her time, Shabana Azmi was considered one of the best actresses like Smita Patil.
Shabana Azmi was born on 18 September 1950 in Hyderabad. Her father Kaifi Azmi was a famous poet. Her brother Baba Azmi is a cinematographer. Shabana Azmi’s childhood was spent in an artistic environment. Shabana Azmi spent her happy childhood in the company of her father, famous poet Kaifi Azmi and mother, stage actress Shaukat Azmi. Shabana started her journey in English films by giving a positive turn to the acting talent inherited from her mother. Shabana Azmi married Javed Akhtar, the famous writer of English films. Javed was already married, but still he divorced his wife and married her out of love for Shabana. The active support of her husband Javed Akhtar boosted Shabana Azmi’s morale and along with adding colors of acting in films, she started expressing her concerns related to the country and society on various social platforms.
Shabana Azmi started her film career in 1973. Her first film was Shyam Benegal’s ‘Ankur’. The success of an art film like Ankur played an important role in getting Shabana Azmi a place in Bollywood. She received the ‘National Award’ for Best Actress for her first film itself. After this, she was awarded the National Award for Best Actress for three consecutive years from 1983 to 1985. Her performance in films like ‘Arth’, ‘Khandhar’ and ‘Paar’ was awarded the National Award, which is an honor for a great actress.
By adding colours of her acting to commercial films like ‘Amar Akbar Anthony’, ‘Parvarish’, ‘Main Azad Hoon’, Shabana Azmi maintained her reach among the discerning audience as well as the general audience. Her contribution in nurturing experimental cinema is noteworthy. Shabana fearlessly proved her acting talent in a controversial film like ‘Fire’. Shabana Azmi’s name comes at the top in the list of capable actresses of Indian cinema. Even after entering the sixth decade of her life, Shabana Azmi’s energy is incomparable. She still makes her active presence felt on the silver screen. Her acting in films like ’15 Park Avenue’ and ‘Honeymoon Travels Private Limited’ dominated the actresses of the new generation.
Shabana Azmi’s contribution in fostering experimental cinema is noteworthy. Shabana fearlessly proved her acting talent in a controversial film like ‘Fire’. She was seen playing the role of a witch in the children’s film ‘Makdi’. If she brought alive the tender emotions of motherhood in ‘Masoom’, she surprised people by playing the role of an influential female don in ‘God Mother’. Shabana Azmi’s name comes at the top in the list of capable actresses of Indian cinema.
Shabana Azmi was awarded the ‘Gandhi International Award for Peace’ for working for the people living in Mumbai’s slums. She has also been the President of the ‘Children’s Film Society’ from 1992-1994. Shabana Azmi has been awarded the ‘National Award’ for Best Actress five times, which is a record. She was first given this award in 1975 for the film ‘Ankur’, then ‘Arth’ in 1983, ‘Khandhar’ in 1984, ‘Paar’ in 1985 and the film ‘Godfather’ in 1999.
Someone has rightly said that whenever an actress reaches the heights of success, her name is linked with the names of many actors; but there are very few actresses who live their life in their own style without caring about anyone. One of those actresses is Shabana Azmi. Shabana Azmi also created her new identity as an active social worker. She played an important role in spreading awareness about AIDS. She was nominated as a member of the Rajya Sabha in 1997. While fulfilling her responsibilities as an MP with seriousness, she did not associate herself with any political party. She has been vocal about her views on any serious national, social issue.
