Shabana Azmi turns 60

As the awe-inspiring Shabana Azmi turns 60, we take you through a short recap of her impressive journey so far…

Shabana Azmi was born on September 18, 1950 in New Delhi, India into a Muslim family. Her parents Kaifi Azmi (an Indian poet) and Shaukat Azmi (a stage actress) were both members of the Communist Party of India. Her brother, Baba Azmi, is a cinematographer.

Ever since her childhood, her parents, being activists themselves inculcated in her a strong respect for human values and ethics. Shabana grew up in a household where it was not abnormal for her to find communist values so dominant around her.

Her parents encouraged her and ever so lightly nudged her towards intellectual growth and stimulation which is highly responsible for her being such a successful actress today.

Shabana graduated in Psychology from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai and then went on to study acting at the renowned Film and Television Institute of India.

Azmi who topped the list of successful candidates at the school once described her reason for attending the school, saying, "I had had the privilege of watching Jaya Bhaduri in a (Diploma) film, Suman, and I was completely enchanted by her performance because it was unlike the other performances I had seen. I really marvelled at that and said, 'My god, if by going to the Film Institute I can achieve that, that's what I want to do.'"

When she had just entered the industry, the graceful actress was linked to film director Shekhar Kapur. Whether the rumors had any substance in them is yet unknown.

She eventually married Indian poet and screenwriter Javed Akhtar on 9 December 1984. The union made her a part of the Akhtar-Azmi film family.

This was Javed Akhtar's second marriage, the first being with scriptwriter Honey Irani. Shabana is also step-mother to Farhan Akhtar and Zoya Akhtar, children of Javed and Honey.

Indian actresses Farah and Tabu are her nieces.

Her intact childhood values have borne fruit as the actress, who was initially labeled as a publicity wannabe, has forced her critics to revise their opinion of her. She is a committed social activist.

She received the Yash Bhartiya Award by the Government of Uttar Pradesh for highlighting women's issues in her work as an actress and activist.

She advocated the cause of slum dwellers, displaced Kashmiri Pandit migrants and victims of the earthquake at Latur (Maharashtra, India).

Coming to her AIDS activism, she featured in a small film clip issued by the Government of India depicting an HIV positive child in her arms and saying: "She does not need your rejection, she needs your love".

In Meghla Aakash she played the role of a doctor treating AIDS patients.

After the9/11, she opposed the advice of the grand mufti of Jama Masjid . She opposed the calling upon the Muslims of India to join the people of Afghanistan in their fight by retorting that the leader go there alone.

She received the Rajiv Gandhi Award for "Excellence of Secularism"

She was awarded the Padma Shri from the government of India in 1988.

In 2006 she was honoured with Gandhi International Peace Award, awarded by Gandhi Foundation, London.

She was appointed Goodwill Ambassador for the United Nations Population Fund in 1998.

Since 1989, she has been a member of the National Integration Council headed by the Prime Minister of India; a member of National AIDS Commission (of India); and was nominated (in 1997) as a member of the Rajya Sabha.

Azmi debuted in 1974 with Shyam Benegal's Ankur. Based on a true story, Azmi gave an enthralling performance as Lakshmi .

After several lead actresses had refused to do the film, Azmi starred in it and the film went on to be a huge hit. She received the National Film Award for Best Actress.

For three years consecutively she dominated the National Awards Best Actress category as she won laurels for her performances in Arth, Khandar and Paar.

After Arth, droves of women came to Azmi's home to share their sorrow and experience. She says,” They made me part of a sisterhood. Even after so many years the role of Pooja whose husband deserts her for an actress, manages to move viewers.”

Director Mrinal Sen's Khandar is another role that she cherishes. Mrinal narrated the story in 20 minutes and she immediately accepted the offer.

Azmi says,” Jamini is not a victim. She retains her dignity despite the terrible vacuum in her life. I loved her character. “

Azmi is known for her characteristic real-life portrayal of her characters. In Mandi she acted as a madam of a whorehouse. For this role, she put on weight and even chewed betel. She played the role of a typical Indian urban wife and homemaker in Masoom. She got Filmfare nominations for both.

She famously said, “You can never, never make a film like Pretty Woman. If you're a prostitute, you have to be rescued before anything happens. A woman can't have an affair. She can't have sex. If she does, she has to die in the end."

Azmi went on to appear as Firdaus in Shyam Benegal's masterpiece Junoon (1978). The film also starred Shashi Kapoor, Naseeruddin Shah, Nafisa Ali and Jennifer Kendal.

Shabana has also tried her hand at experimental cinema with a cause. Her willingness to portray the plight of women in India was apparent in Deepa Mehta's Fire.

The movie dealt with the sensitive issue of lesbianism and the onscreen intimate scenes were the first of their kind in the country. Naturally they drew a lot of protests . But Azmi was also rewarded for her incredible performance as Radha . The role brought her international recognition with the Silver Hugo Award for Best Actress at the 32nd Chicago Film Festival and Jury Award for Best Actress at Outfest, Los Angeles.

Her performance in movies like Swami ( a bright village girl) and Bhavna she won the Filmfare Best Actress Award in 1978 and 1985 respectively.

More recently her negative performance in Makdee got her nominated again for the Filmfare Best Villain award.

Shabana famously welt bald for Deepa Mehta's Water which she eventually did not appear in.

Deepa Mehta who had initially casted Shabana and Nandita Das together in Fire found herself in the middle of controversy again when she expressed her desire to cast them again. Azmi had to be dropped and the movie started filming in 2003.

Thodisi Bewafai, Avtaar and Sparsh are among her other noted films.

She also received the Best Actress award for Libaas in North Korea and in 1994 she received the Best Actress award for Gautam Ghose's Patang at the Taormina Arte Festival in Italy

Azmi has touched every genre of acting possible. She was seen on the small-screen in Anupama.

Besides acting in a number of plays she has also appeared in many international movies like City of Joy and The Return of the Pink Panther.

Reema Kagti's mega-entertainer Honeymoon Travels Pvt Ltd (2007) saw Azmi playing Naheed Fernandes, opposite Boman Irani's Oscar Fernandes. The two played a middle-aged-newly-married couple. The film was produced by Farhan Akhtar.

True to her perfectionist style, Azmi took lessons in Carnatic music for Mahesh Dattani's Morning Raga(2004).

Pointing out the differences in all these media, she once remarked that “theatre was really the actor's medium; the stage was actor's space; cinema was the director's medium; and television was a writer's medium”