On the death anniversary of legendary Zohra Sehgal, Tasweermahal is celebrating the life and times of one of the most lively and “Jawan” actresses of all time. It’s been ten years since her passing, but she is with us every moment, as beautiful, as mischievous, as lively, and as quirky. They say legends don’t die; they become stronger with time, and at least that’s absolutely true in the case of Zohra.
As she would have quoted Hafeez Jalandhari, “Abhi To Main Jawaan Hoon.” Tasweermahal is again remembering her exemplary young life of over a hundred years.
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Willum Skeener
In the early 2000s, when I was a teenager, I fell in love with an actress. She was cute to the core, mischievous, and had a wicked sense of humour. She oozes confidence and charm, and I was mesmerised by that. I loved the way she used to speak and how her eyes lit up and brightened the screen. She was beautiful, supple, and had killer moves. She was also over 80, and her name was Zohra Sehgal. I still love her, and who the hell is not in love with her?
Zohra Sehgal was born on April 27, 1912, in Saharanpur, India, as Sahibzadi Zohra Mumtazullah Khan Begum. Sehgal’s early life was marked by adventure and defiance of the norm. Raised in a traditional Muslim household, she was the third of seven children and described herself as a tomboy. At the age of one, she contracted glaucoma, which led to a loss of vision in her left eye. Despite this, she pursued her passions with vigour, eventually enrolling at Queen Mary College in Lahore.
During her school days, Zohra Sehgal was actively involved in dance and acting shows, where she received praise from teachers and guests for her performances.
Despite her father’s lack of support, Zohra Sehgal’s passion for dance led her to be selected at Mary Wigman’s prestigious dance school in Germany. This remarkable achievement made her the first Indian to attend the renowned institution known for producing top dancers and choreographers globally.
After three years of dance training, Sehgal joined Uday Shankar in 1935, touring extensively across Japan, Egypt, Europe, and the US. Sehgal and French dancer Simkie were the lead dancers of the troupe.
Zohra Sehgal met her husband, painter Kameshwar Sehgal, at an arts centre established by Uday Shankar in the Himalayas. Despite facing opposition due to their age difference and religious backgrounds, they wed in 1942, making an unconventional choice.
She opened “Zoresh Dance Institute” in Lahore with her husband, Kameshwar Sehgal. Zohra Sehgal began working at the Prithvi Theatre in 1945, earning a monthly salary of Rs 400. Her sister, Uzra Butt, was also there. For the next 14 years, she toured India with the group. Concurrently, she also joined the Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA).
She acted in several plays for IPTA and even made her film debut in IPTA’s first film production, “Dharti Ke Lal” (1946), which was directed by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas. The same year, she appeared in Chetan Anand’s directorial “Neecha Nagar,” which went on to receive the Palme d’Or. at the Cannes Film Festival.
During this phase, she worked with several theatre and film personalities, like K.A. Abbas and Ebrahim Alkazi; she portrayed Begum Qudsia in his play “Din Ke Andhere.” Zohra Sehgal also choreographed for Hindi films such as Neecha Nagar (1946), Afsar (1950), Guru Dutt’s “Baazi” (1951), and the dream sequence song in Raj Kapoor’s “Awaara,” Farar (1955), C.I.D. (1956), and Nau Do Gyarah (1957).
In 1959, tragedy struck as she lost her husband. After that, Zohra moved to Delhi and started working as the director of “Natya Academy.” In 1962, she moved to London, England, where she received a drama scholarship. Sehga’s first television role came in 1964 with “The Rescue of Pluffles,” a BBC adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s story. Next year, she appeared in an episode of the science fiction fantasy series “Doctor Who.”
She also anchored 26 episodes of the BBC TV series Padosi (1977). In 1982, she starred in “Courtesans of Bombay (1983),” a docudrama directed by Ismail Merchant. She was cast as Lady Chatterjee in “The Jewel in the Crown,” which brought her wider recognition, which was followed by Channel 4’s “Tandoori Nights, Partition (1985), Partition (1987), Never Say Die (1987), The Bill (1989), Masala (1990), Firm Friends (1992), Bhaji on the Beach (1993), and Little Napoleons (1994).
Sehgal returned to India in the mid-1990s; her first TV shows here were Mulla Nasruddin (1990) and Ek Tha Rusty (1995). Zohra’s first big film in India after her comeback was Mani Ratnam’s “Dil Se(1998), where she played the role of Sharukh Khan’s grandmother. The younger generation was mesmerised to see her perform and own the sect. She became a fan favourite, which led to her doing many films in the late 1990s and 2000s, like ‘The Mystic Masseur’ (2001), ‘Bend It Like Beckham’ (2002), Ham Dil de Chuke Sanam (1999), Saaya (2003), Veer-Zara (2004), Saawariya, and Cheeni Kum (2007).
Zohra Sehgal is also known for her legendary poetry performances and live shows. She first recited the poem at a memorial for Uday Shankar in 1983, hosted by his brother Ravi Shankar. This event sparked invitations for more performances, including a trip to Pakistan for “An Evening With Zohra Sehgal,” where she recited verses. No one can match her vigour, her love for life, or the optimism she had. At nearly a hundred years old, when she used to recite “Abhi to main jawan hoon,” the people present had to agree that she was indeed a “jawan.”
Sehgal’s contributions to the arts were recognised with numerous awards, including the Padma Shri in 1998, the Kalidas Samman in 2001, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship in 2004, and the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second-highest civilian honour, in 2010.
Zohra Sehgal passed away on July 10, 2014, but her legacy endures. She remains an inspiration to many, a testament to the power of perseverance and the impact one individual can have on the cultural fabric of the time.
