Meena Kumari

It's been more than 50 years since Meena Ji breathed her last and left the cruel world for a better place.

August 1st, 1933 - March 31, 1972

A life plagued with many difficulties, pains, and heartbreaks comes to an end. Generations have passed, but the love of her fans is still the same; they love her, adore her, can feel her pain, and hate everyone they think is responsible for her sorrows.

On Meena Ji's birth anniversary Let's take a look at Meena Apa's life. Her journey began under challenging circumstances. Born on August 1st, 1933, her father, Ali Bux, was a musician and actor, and her mother, Iqbal Begum, was a singer. Financial hardships led Meena Apa's father to consider leaving her at an orphanage, but he soon relented and brought her home. Meena Apa's grandmother, Hemsundari Tagore, was married to Jadu Nandan Tagore (18401862), who was a cousin of "Rabindranath Tagore." According to some accounts, Hemsundari Tagore was herself a cousin of Gurudev.

After the death of her first husband, Hem Sundari became a nurse in Merrut and married a Christian journalist, Munshi Pyare Lal Shakir Meeruti (1880-1956), and had a daughter, Prabhavati Devi, a gifted singer who married Ali Bux and adopted the name "Iqbal Begum."

Her career started as a child artist when director Vijay Bhatt cast Mahjabeen in the film "Leatherface (1939)," followed by Adhuri Kahani (1939), Pooja (1940), and Ek Hi Bhool (1940). Her first film as "Baby Meena" was "Ek Hi Bhool (1940)." She also acted in films like "Nai Roshni (1941)," "Bahen (1941)," "Kasauti (1941)," "Vijay (1942)," "Garib (1942)," "Pratiggya (1943)," and "Lal Haveli (1944)."