Asha Parekh to receive Dada Saheb Phalke Award: Unknown facts about the veteran actress
Asha Parekh, 79, will be presented with the award during the 68th National Film Awards ceremony, to be held on Friday. Here are some things you should know about the actress
FollowVeteran actor Asha Parekh will be honoured with the Dada Saheb Phalke award for 2020, the highest recognition in the field of Indian cinema, Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur said on Tuesday. Parekh, 79, will be presented with the award during the 68th National Film Awards ceremony, to be held on Friday.
The five-member Dada Saheb Phalke Award committee -- comprising Asha Bhosle, Hema Malini, Poonam Dhillon, Udit Narayan, and TS Nagabharana -- decided on Parekh's name for the honour, Thakur told reporters in his constituency Hamirpur, Himachal Pradesh.
Quitting as a child actor
When Asha Parekh made her acting debut in Aasmaan, she immediately became well-known. She was ten at most. She seems to have achieved success at a young age since, at the age of 12, she was cast in the movie Baap Beti after catching the notice of renowned filmmaker Bimal Roy while performing on stage. Even though Asha had been in several films as a child actress before the one that flopped at the box office, she was so disappointed that she gave up acting to return to school like any other adolescent.
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Rejection for the better
At 16, Asha Parekh wished to return to acting in movies as a heroine, but Vijay Bhatt rejected her. She was not star material, hence he declined to include her in his movie Goonj Uthi Shehnai. He rejected her in favour of the actress Ameeta. But destiny had larger plans for her since a day later, producer Subodh Mukherjee and writer-director Nasir Hussain cast Asha as the lead heroine of the movie Dil Deke Dekho, which also starred Shammi Kapoor in the lead role. The movie eventually become a smash hit.
Superstardom
Asha Parekh succeeded with Nasir Hussein's Dil Deke Dekho, her debut movie as the lead heroine, after receiving some initial rejections and minor setbacks. From that point on, there was no turning back for her. Six further films, including Teesri Manzil and Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon by the same director, were offered to the actress, who is half Jain and half Muslim. Asha reigned Bollywood for over three decades and received several prizes, including the Padma Shri and Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award.
Unmarried
The stunning actress who had reigned Bollywood for many years refused to wed, claiming that it was in her nature to refuse requests for marriage. Call it fate or decision, but Asha is still unmarried today. She has admitted to loving someone for a long time, but like most love tales, hers seems unfinished.
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Asha Parekh's BFFs in Bollywood
Even now, the top actresses' girl gang of Asha Parekh, Shammi, Waheeda Rahman, and Helen can be seen hanging out together at movie premieres and parties despite the fierce competition, cold wars, and conflicts that formerly existed among them. Asha and Shammi are inseparable, and their camaraderie continues to astound viewers. That really is something that inspires the younger generation.
Parekh, an eminent actor whose career spans close to five decades, started her acting career at the age of 10. Known for starring in over 95 films that include "Dil Deke Dekho", "Kati Patang", "Teesri Manzil", "Baharon Ke Sapne", "Pyar Ka Mausam", and "Caravan", she is considered one of the most influential actresses of all time in Hindi cinema.
She started her career as a child artist with the 1952 film "Aasmaan" and starred in Bimal Roy's "Baap Beti" two years later. Parekh made her debut as a leading lady in Nasir Hussain's 1959 movie "Dil Deke Dekho", in which she starred opposite Shammi Kapoor.
Also a director and producer, Parekh had helmed the acclaimed TV drama "Kora Kagaz" in the late 1990s. The screen legend also served as the first female chairperson of the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) from 1998-2001. She came out with her autobiography, "The Hit Girl", co-written by film critic Khalid Mohamed, in 2017.
She was also honoured with the Padma Shri, the country's fourth-highest civilian award, in 1992. Last year, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for 2019 was conferred on Rajinikanth.
(Inputs from PTI)
