Veena (actress)
Encyclopedia
Veena also known as Veena Kumari her real name is Tajour Sultana was a female actress in India
.
Veena was born as Tajour Sultana on 4 July 1926 in Quetta
, Balochistan
, British India. At some point of time, her family shifted to Lahore
and she belonged to Lahore's Chuna Mandi. She started out playing heroine roles in Pre-Partition films. She made her debut with Garib and Gawandhi (1942) at around sixteen years of age. Garib was made in Urdu and Gawandhi was made in Punjabi and directed by Mehboob Khan. In Garib, she played the role of Lata and in Gawandhi she played heroine opposite Shyam who played the hero. She became famous as actress and heroine in Pre-Partition Hindi
and Urdu
films. Her early years in films came with films like Najma
(1943), Phool (1945), and Humayun (1945). Her last film before the Partition of India
was Rajputani (1946) in which she played a supporting role. She decided to remain in India after the partition and she acted through the mid-to-late-1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and early-1980s. She played roles in big films like Halaku (1956), Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi
(1958), Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), Taj Mahal (1963) (for which she received the Filmfare's Award for Best Supporting Actress), Do Raaste (1969), and Pakeezah (1972). She retired in 1983 after the release of Razia Sultan (1983) in which she played Empress Shah Turkhan. She died in Bombay in 2004 after 21 years of retirement when she was 78 years old after suffering from a protracted illness. She had appeared in over 70 feature films in a career spanning 41 years (1942 till 1983).
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
Veena was born as Tajour Sultana on 4 July 1926 in Quetta
Quetta
is the largest city and the provincial capital of the Balochistan Province of Pakistan. Known as the "Fruit Garden of Pakistan" due to the diversity of its plant and animal wildlife, Quetta is home to the Hazarganji Chiltan National Park, which contains some of the rarest species of wildlife in the...
, Balochistan
Baluchistan (Chief Commissioners Province)
The Chief Commissioner's Province of Baluchistan was a province of British India located in the northern parts of the modern Balochistan province.- History :...
, British India. At some point of time, her family shifted to Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
and she belonged to Lahore's Chuna Mandi. She started out playing heroine roles in Pre-Partition films. She made her debut with Garib and Gawandhi (1942) at around sixteen years of age. Garib was made in Urdu and Gawandhi was made in Punjabi and directed by Mehboob Khan. In Garib, she played the role of Lata and in Gawandhi she played heroine opposite Shyam who played the hero. She became famous as actress and heroine in Pre-Partition Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
and Urdu
Urdu
Urdu is a register of the Hindustani language that is identified with Muslims in South Asia. It belongs to the Indo-European family. Urdu is the national language and lingua franca of Pakistan. It is also widely spoken in some regions of India, where it is one of the 22 scheduled languages and an...
films. Her early years in films came with films like Najma
Najma (film)
Najma is a 1943 Indian film directed by Mehboob Khan and starring Ashok Kumar and Veena. The film's music is by Rafiq Ghaznavi with lyrics by Anjum Pilibhiti. Najma was the first film under Mehboob Khan's Mehboob Productions banner. Khan paid Kumar Rs. 1 lakh for his role in the film, a record at...
(1943), Phool (1945), and Humayun (1945). Her last film before the Partition of India
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
was Rajputani (1946) in which she played a supporting role. She decided to remain in India after the partition and she acted through the mid-to-late-1940s, 1950s, 1960s, 1970s and early-1980s. She played roles in big films like Halaku (1956), Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi
Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi
Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi is a famous 1958 Bollywood comedy. The film featured Kishore Kumar, his two brothers Anoop Kumar and Ashok Kumar, and Madhubala. Kishore Kumar sang many of the songs in the film, along with Asha Bhosle. The music was composed by SD Burman, and the lyrics were written by...
(1958), Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), Taj Mahal (1963) (for which she received the Filmfare's Award for Best Supporting Actress), Do Raaste (1969), and Pakeezah (1972). She retired in 1983 after the release of Razia Sultan (1983) in which she played Empress Shah Turkhan. She died in Bombay in 2004 after 21 years of retirement when she was 78 years old after suffering from a protracted illness. She had appeared in over 70 feature films in a career spanning 41 years (1942 till 1983).
Filmography
| Year | Film | Character/Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Razia Sultan | Empress Shah Turkhan | |
| 1981 | Agni Pareeksha | Karuna Choudhary | |
| Khawaja Ki Diwani | |||
| 1980 | Payal Ki Jhankaar | ||
| 1977 | Jay-Vejay: Part - II | Chandeli | |
| Shatranj Ke Khilari | Queen Mother | ||
| 1974 | 5 Rifles | Maharani | |
| Pran Jaye Par Vachan Na Jaye | Raja's mother | ||
| 1973 | Jheel Ke Us Paar | Mrs. Kulwant Rai 'Rani Maa' | |
| Chhupa Rustam | Mrs. Rajendra Jain | ||
| Banarasi Babu | Mohan's Mother | ||
| Mere Gharib Nawaz | Begum Baig | ||
| 1972 | Parichay | Sati Devi | |
| Pakeezah | Nawabjaan | ||
| Shehzada | Rajlaxmi | ||
| 1970 | Heer Raanjha | ||
| Naya Raasta | Rukmini | ||
| 1969 | Do Raaste | Mrs. Gupta, Satyan's mother | |
| Anmol Moti | |||
| 1968 | Aashirwad | Leela S. Choudhary | |
| Saathi | Rajni's Mother | ||
| Shrimanji | |||
| 1967 | Chhoti Si Mulaqat( | Shanker's wife | |
| 1966 | Sannata | ||
| 1965 | Sikandar-E-Azam | Sikandar's mother | |
| 1964 | Baghi | ||
| Shehnai | |||
| 1963 | Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon | Jamuna | |
| Taj Mahal | Malka-E-Alam Noor Jehan/Mehrunissa | ||
| 1959 | Chhoti Bahen | Yashoda | |
| Kaagaz Ke Phool | Veena Varma/Veena Sinha) | ||
| 1958 | Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi | Kamini | |
| Mehndi | |||
| 1957 | Mera Salaam | ||
| Mumtaz Mahal | |||
| Naya Zamana | |||
| 1956 | Halaku | Maharani | |
| 1952 | Aasmaan | ||
| Annadata | |||
| 1951 | Afsana | Meera | |
| Kashmir | |||
| 1950 | Dastan | Rani | |
| 1946 | Rajputani | ||
| 1945 | Humayun | Rajkumari (as Veena Kumari) | |
| Phool | |||
| 1943 | Najma | Najma | |
| 1942 | Garib | Lata (as Veena Kumari) | |
| 1939 | Swastik | ||