Mumbai, Jan 20 (.) Parveen Babi, one of Bollywood’s most iconic and unconventional actresses whose glamour and bold screen persona transformed Hindi cinema, today marks her 21st death anniversary.
A fashion icon, box-office phenomenon and cultural disruptor of her time, Parveen passed away on January 20, 2005, at the age of 50, leaving behind a legacy as luminous as it was tragic.
Born on April 4, 1954, into the aristocratic Babi family, Parveen Babi began her professional life as a model before entering films in the early 1970s. With her westernised attire, confident demeanour and unconventional choice of roles, she stood apart, bold, modern and unapologetically individual.
She first drew attention with Majboor (1974), but it was Deewar (1975) that transformed her into a cultural symbol. Her performance as Anita defied accepted moral boundaries and altered the portrayal of women in mainstream Hindi cinema. What followed was an extraordinary streak of hits, including Amar Akbar Anthony, Suhaag, Kaala Patthar, Shaan, Kranti, Kaalia and Namak Halaal, opposite the biggest stars of the time.
Off screen, Babi was equally influential. A fashion trendsetter, she frequently appeared on the covers of leading film magazines and in major advertising campaigns. In 1976, she became the first Indian actress to feature on the cover of Time magazine, an unprecedented international acknowledgement at the time.
Yet, fame proved fragile. Her professional success was often overshadowed by public scrutiny of her relationships and mental health. Babi remained unmarried and her relationships with actors Danny Denzongpa, Kabir Bedi and filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt were widely discussed. Her retreat from the public eye in the early 1980s triggered widespread rumours, making a long and painful battle with mental illness that slowly cut her off from both cinema and the world around her.
After leaving the cinema, Parveen Babi immersed herself in writing, art, music and intellectual pursuits, choosing a reclusive life in Mumbai. Her final appearance on screen came with Irada in 1991.
Parveen Babi was found dead in her Mumbai residence in January 2005, several days after her death. Post-mortem findings cited organ failure due to diabetes, with no evidence of foul play. Her solitary end shocked the country and brought renewed attention to mental health and the hidden toll of celebrity life. . . PRP