Purnima, one of the most prominent actresses of Hindi cinema’s golden age, is remembered for her films like Patanga, Jogan, Badal, Sagai, Jaal, Aurat, Baghi Sipahi, Zanjeer, Naam, and many more.
Early Life and Career
Purnima was an Indian actress who worked predominantly in Hindi-language films. She was born “Meherbhano Mohammad Ali” on March 2, 1934, in Bombay. Her father, Ram Sheshadri Ayangar, was the accountant of film distributor Kikubhai Desai (father of Manmohan Desai), while her mother was from a Muslim family in Lucknow.
Her sister, Shirin, worked as an actress in the 1930s and later married filmmaker Nanabhai Bhatt, the father of Mahesh Bhatt. She was the grandmother of actor Emraan Hashmi. She took the screen name ‘Purnima’ when she entered the film industry.
Purnima started her career in the late 1940s and became a popular actress in the 1950s. Purnima made her acting debut with Raman B. Desai’s “Radhe Shyam” in 1948, when she was still in school. In the film, she played the role of Radha. She followed it with films like “Thes (1949)” and “Narad Muni (1949).”
In 1949 she starred in HS Rawail‘s Patanga with Nigar Sultana, Shyam, Yakub, and Gope. She then Jogan (1950) with Dilip Kumar and Nargis and Badal (1951) with Madhubala and Premnath. Over the years Purnima acted in more than 80 Hindi films, including Sagai (1951), Jaal (1952), Saloni (1952), Parbat (1952), Aurat (1953), Shole (1953), Toote Khilone (1954), Bhai Sahab (1954), Pooja (1954), Rajdhani (1956), and Panna (1956).
Personal Life and Struggles
Purnima had two marriages in her life. Her first husband was a journalist named Syed Shauqat Hashmi Hashmi later moved to Pakistan during the partition of India. Her son from this marriage, Anwar Hashmi, also acted in a few films. Anwar Hashmi is the father of Emraan Hashmi. Her second husband was filmmaker Bhagwan Das Varma, whom she married in 1954 and died in 1962.
She said in an interview that “I had a successful career, acting as a heroine and second lead in about 20 films. In 1954, I married Producer-Director Bhagwan Das Varma and decided to leave acting. However, our circumstances changed drastically, leading to financial difficulties. Things became so challenging that I had to sell my own bungalow.”
Career Shift
Needing to earn money, she accepted any role that came her way, resulting in a mix of good and bad films like “Chamak Chandni (1957),” “Baghi Sipahi (1958),” “Jang Bahadur (1958),” “Post Box 999 (1958),” “Son of Sinbad (1958),” “Jawani Ki Hawa (1959),” “Kangan (1959),” “Madam XYZ (1959),” “College Girl (1960),” and “Gambler (1960). Over time, without even realising it, she transitioned from lead roles to becoming a character artist.
As a character artist, she acted in films like Humjoli (1970), Banphool (1971), Zanjeer (1973), Ganga Ki Saugandh (1978), Khara Khota (1981), Poonam (1981), Hum Se Badkar Kaun (1981), Kaalia (1981), Dharam Kanta (1982), Inquilaab (1984), Amarnath Aunt Yaadgar (1984), Sadaa Suhagan (1986), and Naam (1986).
After Sada Suhagan, Poornima retired from acting due to her health. She had Alzheimer’s disease during the last few years of her life and died on 14 August 2013. She was remembered by her family and fans as a talented and versatile actress who left a mark on the Hindi film industry.
Purnima on IMDB
