Waheeda Rehman

Waheeda Rehman (born 3 February 1938) is an Indian actress and dancer who has appeared in mainly Hindi films, as well as Telugu, Tamil, Bengali and Malayalam films. She is noted for her contributions to different genres of films and different roles from the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. Her accolades consist of a National Film Award, two Filmfare Awards out of eight nominations, the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award and the Centenary Award for Indian Film Personality. Throughout her career, she has been frequently cited as one of Bollywood's "most beautiful" actresses by various media outlets, a title for which she has received substantial publicity.Although Rehman achieved her film debut in the Telugu film Rojulu Marayi (1955), she received recognition for her work in Hindi films directed by Guru Dutt, which included Pyaasa (1957), Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960) and Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962), for which she received her first Filmfare nomination. She continued acting in the mid-1960s, starring in successful movies and establishing herself as one of the leading ladies in classic Indian cinema. Rehman's career reached its highest point when she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress twice, for the Hindi blockbuster Guide (1965) and Neel Kamal (1968) and received nominations for Ram Aur Shyam (1967) and Khamoshi (1970). Despite winning the National Film Award for Best Actress for portraying a clanswoman in love with a separate clansman in the commercial failure Reshma Aur Shera (1971), her career came to a standstill when she was reduced to motherly, supporting roles in films. Rehmen's notable performances in the 1970s are Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Namkeen (1982) and Lamhe (1991), and the latter film became her last film credit in the next 12 years until 2002, where she returned to the film industry. In 2011, the Government of India honoured Rehman with the Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award of the country. Apart from acting, Rehman is a philanthropist. She is an advocate for education and is an ambassador for Rang De, an organization combating poverty in India.