Generally action in cinema is considered to be the forte of heroes. But during 1935, a screenplay was especially penned for an actress. This is none other than Hunterwali (as she is fondly called) Nadia. Her original name is Mary Evans.Â
Before taking up acting, Nadia worked as a theater artiste.Then she worked in a circus and got the name Fearless Nadia. She was made known to the Hindi film industry by Jamshed J B H Wadia. Initially she appeared in a guest role as a slave girl. The films
Desh Deepak
and Noor-e-Yaman proved her talent and she instantly struck a chord with the audience. J.B.H and his sibling Homi, realized the expertise of Nadia in performing stunts and hence, decided to make her a star.Â
Nadia was born on January 8, 1908. She is renowned not only for her acting, but also for her stunts. She is best remembered for her role in Hunterwali wherein she was masked as well as cloaked. She did all her stunts in the film; whether it is sword-wielding or whip-cracking. This mesmerized the audience and they loved her to the core. The 30s, 40s and 50s saw her acting in several films of the genre action-adventure. Some of these films were Diamond Queen, Frontier Mail, and Jungle Princess. She generally donned the role similar to
Robin Hood
, wherein the needy are rescued.Â
Who would forget Nadia fighting the baddies above a running train! Most of her scenes had her exercising in the gym. This seemed to pave way to fitness craze during that period.Â
Homi and Nadia romanced each other by the 1940s, but got married only in 1961. The year 1968 saw her acting in her final film Khiladi. Her retirement days were spent in growing horses. She breathed her last in 1995 at the ripe old age of 87. Fearless Nadia was so famous in her period that a documentary named Fearless; The Hunterwali Story was made by her great grand nephew. Such was the greatness of this brave actress.Â
Nadia has around 50 films to her credit. Plans have been going around in releasing a film on Nadia; let’s hope things materialize..