Ila Arun
Sohaila Kapur
Pallavi Vinay Joshi
Mita Vashisht
Seema Kelkar
Bela Bhansali
Shama Zaidi
Aanjjan Srivastav
Pankaj Berry
Kulbhushan Kharbanda
Piyush Mishra
Ravi Jhankal
Irrfan Khan
Lucky Ali
Naseeruddin Shah
Sadashiv Amrapurkar
Tom Alter
V. K. Murthy
Om Puri
Chakradhar Sahu
Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Vasant Dev
Sunil Shanbag
Shyam Benegal
Roshan Seth
Dilip Panda
1. Ila Arun
Ila Arun is of the star sign Pisces being born on 14th March in Jaipur, Rajasthan where she was also brought up. Her siblings are Piyush Pandey, Prasoon Pandey, Rama Pandey and Tripti Pandey, none of them a part of the Bollywood business like their sister. Ila completed her education graduating from the Maharani Girls’ College in her hometown and is popular for acting and singing, mostly for the latter. Her strong, husky voice of earthy tones has proved her an incomparable singer in Rajasthani folk/folk-pop fusion songs while dabbling in other genres including classical music.
Apart from Hindi, she has sung songs in different languages including Tamil and Telugu. Ms. Arun’s steady rise to fame comprised of creating multiple albums including Vote for Ghagra, Main Ho Gayi Sawa Lakh Ki, Banjaran, Nigod...
2. Sohaila Kapur
A woman of many talents- Sohalia Kapur is best known for her career as a Journalist which spanned for more than ten years. Born in Delhi, as famed actor Dev Anand’s niece and filmmaker Shekhar Kapur’s youngest sister, Sohalia is part of a family which was progressive and. With acting and scriptwriting in her genes, Sohalia lived the journalist's life before accepting the creative writer in her. Sohalia was born as the daughter of Dr. K. B. Kapur, who was the physician to Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, former President of India. As a child, she lived in her own fictitious world. Once in an interview, Sohalia admitted that in her early life, fantasy and reality were blurred together. Everybody and everything was story and eventually she became more serious about penning these stories down.
At a very young age these stories...
3. Pallavi Vinay Joshi
Pallavi Joshi is an Indian model, producer, film and television actress. She started her career as an on stage performer at her early age. She started acting in the big screen as a child actress, appearing in films like Badla and the 1977 Bollywood film, Aadmi Sadak Ka. In 1979, she played as a blind kid in the film, Dada.
From 1980’s to early 90’s, Pallavi acted in various films including the Rukmavati Ki Haveli and Vanchit. She played as Iti opposite Nirvana (played by Nitish Bharadwaj in the 1988 Hindi film, Trishagni. Pallavi made a special appearance in the film, Rihaee in 1988. She also donned the 1992 Hindi film, Suraj Ka Satvan Ghoda under the direction of Shyam Benegal, where she played the role of Lily, the intellectual. The actress also bagged supporting roles as a sister or the friend of the heroi...
4. Mita Vashisht
Mita Vashisht is an Indian television, theatre and film actress known for her impeccable performance in different Hindi movies and television serials.
Vashisht was born in Pune, Maharashtra on 2 November, 1967, to Dutt Vashisht and Meenakshi Mehta Vashisht. Mita holds a post graduate in literature degree from Punjab University and also is a graduate from the National School of Drama.
She has appeared in several television serials like Space City Sigma, Bharat Ek Khoj, Mr Yogi, Pachpan Khabe Lal Deewaren, Swabhimaan, Kirdaar, Ghum, Saalgirah, Vijay Jyoti, Kaaun, Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki and Surveen Guggal.
Besides acting, Mita is an active social work who has worked for children in remand home and sex workers. She has also written and produced three short movies and a television serial....
5. Seema Kelkar
Seema Kelkar is an actor, model, and artist based out of Mumbai. Seema was born in Kuwait in the year 1962. Though born in Kuwait, she has spent most of her life in Mumbai. Seema has done Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from the prestigious R.A. Podar College.
She also has a done a certificate course in textile design from the Rachna Sansad College. Also, her immense interest in fine arts led her to pursue a foundation course in Fine Art from the renowned J.J.School of Art.
Seema is best known for her career as a ravishing model and a wonderful actress. She as backed a special place in the advertisement world by modeling for more than hundred advertisements. She has modeled for many famous brands that range from basic daily use pr...
6. Bela Bhansali
Bela Sehgal (née Bhansali) is an Indian film director and editor. She is known for her work in the Bollywood film and television industry. Bela was born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, to Navin Bhansali and Leela Bhansali. When she was young, her mother used to sew clothes to support their family and make ends meet. Bela is the sister of the renowned Bollywood film director Sanjay Leela Bhansali. She is married to Deepak Sehgal and has two daughters named Sharmin Sehgal and Simran Sehgal. Sharmin is an actress known for her role in the film "Malaal" (released in 2019). Bela has been a crucial part of the Bollywood film and television industry for a long time.
She has directed many popular music videos for T-Series alongside supporting her brother in producing movies. Bela always wanted to become an independent d...
7. Shama Zaidi
Shama Zaidi is an Indian costume designer, screenplay writer, art director, art critic, theater artist, and documentary filmmaker. She was born on the 25th of September in the year 1938. She is a native of the Indian town of Rampur. Her husband is M S Sathyu who is a filmmaker, art director, and a designer. He is known for his cult movie in Urdu called Garam Hawa. Shama is the daughter of the reputed politician and educationist Bashir Hussain Zaidi. Her mother’s name is Qudsia Zaidi who is an associate of the theater personality and communist ideologue Habib Tanvir. Shama has two brothers.
Both her parents were active parts of the communist movement in India and hence, Shama grew up in an aura which was strongly left-wing. She did her schooling in Mussoorie’s Woodstock School. She did her college fr...
8. Aanjjan Srivastav
Aanjjan Srivastav is a veteran Indian Stage, Film and Television Actor. He was born on June 2, 1948 in Kolkata (previously known as Calcutta) to a household from Uttar Pradesh. His father is a banker who worked at the Allahabad Bank in Kolkata. He studied Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Laws at Calcutta University. From there, shifted his focus to acting by joining Theatre Groups in the year 1968 while doing plays at All India Radio.
His father wanted him to work at the Allahabad Bank while doing plays simultaneously. But when his sister died in 1976, his father finally allowed him to move to Mumbai and pursue his acting career moreover. Shortly after his arrival to Mumbai, the actor instantly participated in Indian People’...
9. Pankaj Berry
10. Kulbhushan Kharbanda
Proudly known for his role as the ingenious bald villain “Shakaal” inspired by James Bond’s Blofeld, Kulbhushan Kharbanda personifies the versatility in the Bollywood industry.
Having been born in Attock district of Punjab (now Pakistan), his family migrated to India where he completed his schooling Jodhpur, Dehradun & Aligarh. Right after his graduation from Kirori Mal College from Delhi University, a few friends of his along with him created a theater group which went by the name of “Abhiyaan.” He also conjugated with Michael Joy’s “Yatrik”, a bilingual theater, consequently also to emerge as its first paid artist. In 1972 he migrated to Kolkata, to work under director Shyamanand Jalan and join the &l...
11. Piyush Mishra
Piyush Mishra is an Indian film actor, singer, composer, lyricist, theatre director. His versatility in acting has proved him as one of the promising actors in Bollywood Cinema today he has. He was also considered to play the role of Prem in the superhit movie “Maine Pyaar kia” which put Salman khan in the hearts of his fans. He has acted in 25 Films, written dialogues in more than 5 films, and given lyrics for more than 10 films and this is just the beginning for him. This versatile actor was born in Gwalior on Jan 13, 1986. He grew up in Gwalior but his love for movie brought him to Delhi and he graduated from prestigious institute national school of drama, Delhi in 1986. Thereafter he established himself as Theatre artist and director in Delhi and made his debut ...
12. Ravi Jhankal
Ravi Jhankal is an experienced Indian stage, television & film personality, who is best known for his appearances in the movies of veteran director ‘Shyam Benegal’. He is remembered playing multiple characters in the popular television series of 90’s, ‘The Discovery of India’, which was based on the book of the same name, written by Late Mr. Jawahar Lal Nehru.
He was also seen plying some noted characters in the television series such as ‘Byomkesh Bakshi’ (1993), ‘Swabhimaan’ (1995) and some recent television series such as ‘Hitler Didi’ (2011), ‘Apno Ke Liye Geeta Ka Dharmayudh’ (2010) & ‘Junoon’ (2008). He was also seen in the television series ‘Pradhanmantri’ (2013), which was broadcasted by ABP News...
13. Irrfan Khan
Irrfan Khan is a noted Bollywood actor who started his career with various Indian television series. His noted Bollywood movies include The Warrior, Maqbool, Haasil, Paan Singh Tomar, Gunday, Rog and The Lunchbox. At the very early stage of his acting career, he acted in various television serials like Barat Ek Khoj, Chanakya, Sara Jahan Hamara, Chandrakanta, Banegi Apni Baat, Star bestsellers, Anoo Goonj and Sparsh.
His early film credits include Ek Doctor Ki Maut and Such a Long Journey. Although these movies were critically appreciated, it did not propel him to success.
His first major Bollywood break was Rog, which caught the attention of critics and also attained commercial success. His 2007 flick Metro also gave him a widespread commercial and critical success. For his role in the movie, h...
14. Lucky Ali
Lucky Ali is a famous Indian singer, who was born as Maqsood Mahmood Ali. He is a Songwriter and a Composer. He is also an Actor and a Philanthropist. He is known for his hobbies such as Farming and Horse Breeding, so he can be mentioned as a Farmer and a Horse Breeder as well. Being born into a family of great artistic talents, he has inherited a lot of artistic skills in his blood for singing as well as acting, not to mention his music composing skills. Renowned comedian of Bollywood, Mehmood, is his father. His mother, Mahelaka, is the sister of the famous Bollywood actress, Meena Kumari. His father is ‘part Afghani-part Bengali’ from his mother’s side. Of the eight children in his family, Lucky Ali is the second. One of his brothers Manzoor Ali is a Bollywood actor too. Over the years, he has got his hands soiled ...
15. Naseeruddin Shah
Naseeruddin Shah is an experimental actor and associated with theater. He had treated art-cinema as his serious endeavor requiring the dedication, discipline, and integrity. Throughout his career, he subjected his own acting to a process of rigorous artistic self-analysis and reflection. He was the discovery of filmmaker Shyam Benegal, who introduced actors like Shabana, Om Puri, Smita Patil and others in the Indian cinema. Undoubtedly, this actor has acted in some serious films such as Sparsh, Paar and Iqbal( three national awards). For his performance in Paar, he received the best actor in the Venice Film Festival. His growth even in art-cinema was slow, as he had acted in women-oriented films of Shabana Azmi or Smita Patil. Later, he was chosen to play lead roles in films of Sai Paranjpye’ Sparsh, ...
16. Sadashiv Amrapurkar
Sadashiv Amarapurkar (Sadashiv Dattaray Amarapurkar) is a versatile actor who had predominantly acted in Hindi and Marathi cinema. As a versatile performer, he even overcame the language barrier and acted in other Indian languages such as Bengali, Tamil, Oriya, Haryanvi, and Telugu even.
He was often known for playing negative characters or even baddie or villain character in many films but never got typecast. With a super cinematic career of more than three decades, the actor was a multi-talented and unconventional person.
After his first success in big screen after Ardh Satya, he had never looked back. Soon, he got a chance to play a villain role in director K. Bhagyaraj’s first Hindi film ‘Aaakhree Rasta’ wi...
17. Tom Alter
Tom Alter is a multifaceted acting personality who has showcased his acting skills in television, Hindi movies and in theaters. Tom Alter was born on Jun22, 1950 in Mussourie, Uttarakhand, India to a family of Christian missionary ancestry and has been awarded with Padmashree award by the Govt. of India in the year 2008. Tom Alter started his acting career with theatres in the year 1976 and till date considers the Late superstar Rajesh Khanna as his idol and inspiration to take up the acting profession. In his personal life, Tom Alter is married with two children, a son Jamie and daughter Afshaan. Tom Alter is a bright graduate from the prestigious FTII, Pune (Film and Television Institute of India). Before taking up acting as a profession Tom Alter used to teach in a school in Mussoorie. Tom Alter appeared in many no...
18. V. K. Murthy
Venkatarama Pandit Krishnamurthy (V. K. Murthy) was a seasoned cinematographer who was associated with legendary filmmaker Guru Dutt. It is Murthy’s black and white photography remains iconic photographs in Guru Dutt’s all films. The magic of light and shadow in these black and white photography for songs like ‘Waqt Ne Kiya Keya’, ’Yeh Duniya Agar Mil Bhi Jaye’, or ‘Sathiya Need Nahin Ayeegi’, etc.
This creative photographer through camera lens did create an impact even in many international film festivals. Even today Guru Dutt’s ‘Pyasa’ and Kagaz Ke Phool’ remains world’s best films. Without proper equipment, Murthy created visual magic on screen, and some of his shots of the black and white e...
19. Om Puri
Om Rajesh Puri is one of the widely noted senior actors in the Indian film industry and he was born on 18th October 1950 in Patiala, Punjab. He is one of the few Bollywood actors to act in mainstream commercial English movies. The alumnus of National School of Drama was also a classmate of renowned actor Naseeruddin Shah of the 1973 class.
He started his movie career in 1976 with the Marathi film ‘Ghashiram Kotwal’ directed by K.Hariharan. The movie was based on a play with the same name and it got success both commercially and critically. His career graph saw the coming of critically acclaimed art films such as ‘Bhavni Bhavai’, ‘Sadga...
20. Chakradhar Sahu
Chakradhar Sahu is an Indian filmmaker who has worked on a number of projects in Odisha. Sahu began his cinematic career in 1996 with the film ‘Nila Mastrani’, for which he received the ‘Odisha State Film Award’ for Best Editor. Godabarish Mohapatra's short tale 'Nila Mastrani' was adapted into a film. He went on to direct mega hits including ‘Kebe Tume Naha Kebe Mu Nahin,' ‘Tumaku Paruni Ta Bhuli,' and ‘Sukha Asuchi,' for which he won the State Film Award for Best Director. In 2016, he released his most recent film, Meemansa. It was also based on a story written by Pradip Dash.
His first and last directing efforts were inspired by literature, with both films based on stories written by two separate authors and published. In this sense, he distinguished hims...
21. Sanjay Leela Bhansali
Born on 24th February 1963, Sanjay Leela Bhansali is an acclaimed Indian multi-faceted personality; he is a producer, director, screenwriter, and music director. He studied at the Film and Television Institution of India. The middle name Leela is from the name of Bhansali’s mother, Leela.
During 1999, Bhansali commenced SLB Films, his production house. Bhansali kickstarted his film career by assisting Vidhu and Vinod Chopra. The flicks he worked as an assistant include 1942: A Love Story, Kareeb, and Parinda. The 1996 flick Khamoshi: The Musical was the first directorial venture of Bhansali. This film had Manisha Koirala and Salman in the lead roles. The film showcased Manisha's efforts to reach out to her deaf and dumb parents beautifully. This flick was well received critically and garnered the Filmfare Critics Awar...
22. Vasant Dev
Vasant Dev is an Indian lyricist who worked for the Hindi film industry. He worked with big directors of Hindi cinemas like Mahesh Bhatt, Govind Nihalani, and Shyam Benegal. Vasant also worked in Hindi parallel cinemas during 1980 and completed his academic from Parle College in Mumbai. He also worked with the great singer Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle in the song Man Kyon Behka in 1984, which directed by Girish Karnad.
In many Bollywood movies as a dialogue writer and as a lyricist some of which include Sur Sangam in 1985, Bharat Ek Khoj, which was a TV series in 1988, Nasoor in 1985, Kamla in 1984, and many others. Some of his work as a lyricist, include Bhumika in 1977, Ramayana the legend of Prince Rama in 1992, Utsav in 1984, Aakrosh in 1980, and Giddh in 1984. Vasant also won th...
23. Sunil Shanbag
Sunil Shanbag is a Theatre Director, Documentary filmmaker, and Screenwriter. He was born on the 7th of October 1956. He did his schooling from the Rishi Valley School in Andhra Pradesh. He completed his graduation from the University of Mumbai. Sunil had no background or training in theatre, but he worked extensively with Satyadev Dubey, an Indian theatre director, playwright, actor, screenwriter, and film director. Satyadev considered him his foremost protege. In 1985, Shanbag founded, Arpana, a theatre company. In 2007, he directed the critically acclaimed Polyester 84, Cotton 56 which won three META awards at the Mahindra Theatre Festival.
He has since directed many plays and garnered love and attention from all over the world. His 2010 play Sex Morality and Censorship got nominated for nine awards at the 2010 Meta Awards, ...
24. Shyam Benegal
Shyam Benegal is a renowned Indian director and screenwriter. He created, what is today referred to as ‘middle cinema’. His work has widely received critical acclaim in India as well as in the International Film Circuit. He was born on 14 December 1934 in Secunderabad. He is a cousin of Guru Dutt. His paternal grandmother and Guru Dutt’s maternal grandmother were sisters. His career began in advertising in the year 1959. He was initially a copywriter. Over the years, he slowly rose to the position of a creative head. He directed over 900 advertisements before focusing his faculties on film-making. Benegal is known for films like Ankur, Nishant, Manthan and Bhumika, which were released in 1973, 1975, 1976 and 1977 respectively. His films and documentaries have been set in realistic contempo...
25. Roshan Seth
26. Dilip Panda