Nutan Biography, Movies Age, Net Worth, Awards, Songs

Know more facts about Nutan’s Age, Family, Biography, Relationships, and Career. Keep reading more to get interesting about Nutan

Profile Summary

Biography

Nutan Samarth Bahl also known as Nutan was an Indian actress who appeared in Hindi films. She appeared in more than 70 films mostly as a protagonist in both big productions and arthouse films ranging in genre from urban romances to literary adaptations to psychological and socio-realist dramas. 

Nutan regarded as one of the finest actors in Indian cinema history was known for her naturalistic acting style in roles of conflicted women which were often deemed unconventional. She has received a record five Filmfare Awards for Best Actress as well as the Padma Shri from the Government of India in 1974.

Nutan began playing character roles in the 1980s and continued to work until shortly before her death. She primarily played motherly roles in films such as Saajan Ki Saheli (1981) Meri Jung (1985) and Naam (1988). (1986). Her performance in Meri Jung earned her a sixth and final Filmfare Award this time in the category of Best Supporting Actress.

Age

Nutan was aged 54 years old at the time of her death. Nutan Samarth was born on 4 June 1936 in Bombay. Her zodiac sign is Gemini.

Childhood

While she had always been drawn to the performing arts and enjoyed singing and dancing she preferred arithmetic and geography in school. For four years she studied classical music with Jagannath Prasad. She went to Switzerland for further studies at La Chatelaine a finishing school in 1953 when her film career had already begun. 

She was sent there at the request of her mother following Nutan's intensive film work and significant weight loss. She described her year there as the happiest of her life and when she returned home a year later she had gained 22 pounds.

Family

She was born as the eldest of four children to director-poet Kumarsen Samarth and his actress wife and filmmaker Shobhna into a Marathi Hindu Chandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu family. Kumarsen was an early developer of India's Films Division. She had two sisters Tanuja and Chatura as well as a brother Jaideep. 

Her parents divorced before Jaideep was born. On October 11 1959 Nutan married Lieutenant-Commander Rajnish Bahl of the Indian Navy. Mohnish their only child was born in 1961. He later became a television and film actor. Her husband died in a fire in his apartment in 2004.

Top 5 Movies of Nutan

Bandini

This film is the high point of a nearly four-decade career. The plot of the film revolves around the life of a woman imprisoned for life for murder. During her confinement she is given the option of choosing between two men: the prison doctor who saved her life in jail or a man from her past. 

In Bandini Nutan played the lead role of Kalyani a young woman who is serving a prison sentence for murder. Nutan's nuanced portrayal of the character was widely appreciated and earned her critical acclaim. She brilliantly conveyed the emotions of a woman who has been wronged by society and is struggling to find redemption.

The film is based on Jarasandha's (Charu Chandra Chakrabarti) Bengali novel Tamasi a former jail superintendent who spent much of his career as a jailor in Northern Bengal and wrote many fictional versions of his experiences. Bandini was the tenth highest-grossing film of the year and was declared a 'Semi Hit' at Box Office India despite receiving not only critical acclaim but also sweeping that year's Filmfare Awards winning six awards in total including the top awards of Best Film and Best Director as well as Best Actress and is still considered a landmark film of the 1960s especially as the director Bimal Roy's final feature film.

Saudagar

The film based on the classic Bengali story 'Ras ' stars Nutan and rising angry young man Amitabh Bachchan. The plot revolves around a calculating man who schemes to deceive a poor but young widow for personal financial gain. The film was India's submission for Best Foreign Film at the 46th Academy Awards.

In Saudagar Nutan played the role of 'Mahjubhi' a village girl who falls in love with a rich merchant 'Veerpurush' (played by Amitabh Bachchan). The story revolves around the conflict between the two families who refuse to accept the relationship between Mahjubhi and Veerpurush. Despite facing several obstacles the couple continues to fight for their love and eventually reunites.

Sujata

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The film based on the classic Bengali story 'Ras ' stars Nutan and rising angry young man Amitabh Bachchan. The plot revolves around a calculating man who schemes to deceive a poor but young widow for personal financial gain. The film was India's submission for Best Foreign Film at the 46th Academy Awards.
 
The movie tells the story of Sujata an orphaned girl who is raised by a lower-caste family. Despite her talents and virtues she is discriminated against because of her low-caste status. She falls in love with a young man from an upper-caste family but their love is forbidden by the society they live in.

Nutan's portrayal of Sujata was heartfelt and authentic. She perfectly captured the character's innocence vulnerability and strength. Her expressions and body language conveyed the pain and suffering that Sujata goes through as a result of caste discrimination.

Chhalia

The film based on the classic Bengali story 'Ras ' stars Nutan and rising angry young man Amitabh Bachchan. The plot revolves around a calculating man who schemes to deceive a poor but young widow for personal financial gain. The film was India's submission for Best Foreign Film at the 46th Academy Awards.

In Chhalia Nutan played the role of Shanti a woman who falls in love with a carefree wanderer named Shambhu (played by Raj Kapoor). Shanti is a strong-willed and independent woman who is not afraid to speak her mind even if it means going against her own family. Chhalia was shot entirely in black and white. Kalyanji-music Anandji's contributed to the film's box office success.

Tere Ghar Ke Samne

This was the first and biggest hit of the time. The film which starred Nutan and Dev Anand in the lead roles depicted the love story of two young blood who fight their family in order for their love to triumph. In this movie Nutan played the lead female character of Sulekha a young and vibrant girl who falls in love with the male protagonist Rakesh (played by Dev Anand).

Nutan's portrayal of Sulekha was commendable as she brought out the character's innocence charm and wit. Her performance in the movie was appreciated by both the critics and the audience. Her chemistry with Dev Anand was also noteworthy making their on-screen romance more engaging and believable.

Career Timeline

Controversy

Sanjeev Kumar Slap Controversy

It was 1969 and director V. Madhusudan Rao was working with Nutan one of the leading actresses of the time and Sanjeev Kumar who was just starting out in the industry. Everything was going swimmingly on Devi's sets until one day when Nutan's slap silenced the entire crew. In a fiery interview with Stardust in 1972 Nutan revealed the reason for publicly slapping her co-star Sanjeev Kapoor. 

Nutan had stated from the start of the incident that it all started after the two had worked on the film Gouri. She'd stated: Ever since I worked with Sanjeev in 'Gouri ' my relationship with him has been friendly straightforward courteous and professional. However no more than that. When I read a report linking me romantically with Sanjeev it came as a complete surprise.

Net Worth

The total net worth of Nutan is $1.4 Million (₹14lakhs). Nutan was a popular Indian actress who starred in over 70 Hindi films in a career that spanned more than four decades. 

She was one of the highest-paid actresses of her time and won numerous awards including six Filmfare Awards for Best Actress. Nutan's contribution to Indian cinema was invaluable and her legacy continues to inspire many generations of actors and actresses in India.

Death

Nutan was diagnosed with breast cancer and treated. After becoming ill she was taken to Mumbai's Breach Candy Hospital in February 1991. At the time she was filming Garajna and Insaniyat. On February 21st she died.

Awards won by Nutan

• Nutan won Filmfare Award Best Supporting Actress in 1986
• Nutan won Filmfare Award Best Actress in 1979
• Nutan won Filmfare Award Best Actress in 1964
• Nutan won Filmfare Award Best Actress in 1960

11 Interesting facts about Nutan

• Nutan grew up in a Marathi family with a filmmaking background.
• She was the daughter of one of the 1940s' top actresses Shobhana Samarth who played 'Seeta' in the superhit 'Ram Rajya' (1943).
• Tanuja Mukherjee her niece Kajol and her son Mohnish Bahl are well-known Bollywood celebrities.
• Nutan began classical singing lessons at the age of three.
• People used to call her skinny and ugly when she was a kid.
• Nutan's parents divorced before the birth of her brother Jaideep.
• Nutan's mother did not anticipate a successful career in the film industry at first.
• Nutan began her career as a child artist (at 14 years old) with the film
• She had a small role in the mid-1940s film 'Nala Damayanti' before making her debut with 'Hamari Beti' (1950).
• Following that Nutan worked in films such as 'Nagina ' 'Hum Log ' 'Shikwa ' and 'Shabab.' However she did not have much success with these films so Shobhna sent her to Switzerland for further studies in 1953. Surprisingly her classmates had no idea she was an actress in Bombay.
• She returned to India after finishing her studies and appeared in the popular Hindi film 'Seema' as 'Amiya Chakraborty' and was featured in the song 'Man Mohana Bade Jhooth ' which not only impressed the audience but also the living legend Lata Mangeshkar.