Shabana Azmi Biography, Movies, Age, Net Worth, Awards, Husband

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

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Shabana Azmi’s Biography

Shabana Azmi is a Hindi film television and theatre actress from India. Azmi one of India's most recognised actresses is noted for portraying diverse often unorthodox female roles in a variety of genres. She earned a record five National Film Awards for Best Actress as well as five Filmfare Awards and other international honours.

The Government of India awarded her the Padma Shri the country's fourth-highest civilian honour in 1998 and the Padma Bhushan the third-highest civilian honour in 2012.

She is the daughter of poet Kaifi Azmi and theatre actress Shaukat Azmi and a graduate of Pune's Film and Television Institute of India. Azmi made her film debut in 1974 and quickly rose to prominence as one of the leading actresses of parallel cinema a new-wave movement recognised for its serious content and neorealism that was supported by the government at the time. 

Azmi has now appeared in over 160 Hindi films both mainstream and independent and in various overseas ventures since 1988. Several of her films have been highlighted as examples of progressivism in how they depict Indian society customs and traditions.

Shabana Azmi’s Age

Shabana Azmi is aged 72 years old as of 2022. Shabana Azmi was born on 18 September 1950. Her birthplace is Hyderabad India. Her zodiac sign is Virgo.

Shabana Azmi's Childhood

Her home environment instilled in her a respect for family bonds and social and human values and her parents constantly encouraged her to pursue a passion for intellectual stimulation and progress. Her parents had a bustling social life and their home was usually buzzing with communist party members and activities. It was not uncommon for her to wake up in the morning to find communist party members sleeping about from the previous night's communist social which had run late.

Shabana Azmi's Education

Azmi went to Queen Mary School in Mumbai. She earned a master's degree in psychology from St. Xavier's College in Mumbai and then went on to study acting at the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) in Pune.

Shabana Azmi's Family

Azmi was born in Hyderabad India into a Shia family. Her parents are Indian poet Kaifi Azmi and famous Indian People's Theatre Association stage actress Shaukat Azmi both members of the Communist Party of India. Baba Azmi her brother is a cinematographer and Tanvi Azmi her sister-in-law is also an actress. Ali Sardar Jafri named Azmi when he was eleven years old. Munni was her parents' nickname for her. Prof. Masood Siddiqui designated Baba Azmi as Ahmer Azmi.

Shabana Azmi Relationship

Benjamin Gilani

Azmi was betrothed to Benjamin Gilani in the late 1970s but the marriage was dissolved. She met her first boyfriend Benjamin Gilani at FTII. The couple got engaged but Gilani supposedly couldn't handle her burgeoning celebrity and their engagement was called off.

Javed Akhtar

In 1972 Akhtar married Honey Irani. They met on the sets of 'Seeta Aur Geeta ' in which Irani played a supporting role. Zoya and Farhan Akhtar were the couple's two children.

While Irani was occupied with domestic duties Akhtar secretly found love in the arms of his colleague Shabana Azmi. Sparks flew faster than planned between Azmi and Akhtar. Azmi's family was solely opposed to marriage because Akhtar was married.

When Irani found out the two allegedly began fighting on a regular basis at home. They did however make certain that the children were not made aware of it. Irani requested that he leave her for Azmi and he did so. The couple began living apart and divorced six years later.

They married in a small Muslim wedding shortly after he received his divorce. Azmi once told that she noticed a flower shop while traveling somewhere. And because she said she liked the appearance and smell of those flowers Akhtar bought all of them from their florist's shop and crammed them into their pocket.

Because Azmi was unable to conceive owing to medical reasons Irani permitted the children to visit their father and spend time with their stepmother without any sentiments of resentment or vengeance. Farhan and Zoya have an unbreakable bond with both Azmi and Akhtar.

Shabana Azmi's Movies

Ankur (1974)

Lakshmi (Shabana Azmi) is a housemaid in the landlord's house and the wife of a deaf-mute drunkard (Sadhu Meher). Surya (Anant Nag) the landlord's son begins an affair with her. Surya has come to the hamlet on his father's request to head the family business but finds life in the backwater settlement suffocating. Lakshmi's husband confronts the wrath of the people after being suspected of stealing and then leaves. 

Lakshmi and Surya's relationship expands beyond bodily boundaries at this point. When Surya's wife returns home everything changes. Surya refuses to acknowledge any responsibility for Lakshmi's pregnancy. He kicks his wife out of the house at her request. Her husband reappears in her life at this point to make amends.

This was Shabana's first film and her performance earned her the National Film Award for Best Actress.

Swami (1977)

The screenplay was based on Sarat Chandra's novel of the same name. Saudamini Mini (Shabana Azmi) has always looked up to her forward-thinking uncle (Utpal Dutt). She like him enjoys reading Western literature and Western philosophers and is an agnostic at heart. Her god-fearing mother is concerned about her growing connection with the neighborhood lad Naren (Vikram) who is charmed by her beauty as well as her brilliance but takes a long time to reveal his true intentions. Mini marries Ghanshyam a wealthy wheat trader (Girish Karnad). 

He's the picture of patience not reacting to her outbursts and mood swings. In her opinion she has become a prisoner in her husband's home and wishes to escape. While Utpal Dutt and Girish Karnad shone in their own ways Shabana Azmi stole the show. Her ice-cold expressions won the day.

Junoon (1979)

The film based on Ruskin Bond's story A Flight of Pigeons is a touching love story set against the setting of the 1857 struggle for independence against the British. Shashi Kapoor plays a Pathan feudal lord who is uninterested in contemporary politics and prefers to breed carrier pigeons. The video beautifully captures India's royalty's apathy toward the realities of the hour.

Despite being married he falls in love with Ruth and she is also attracted to him. His wife Firdaus (Shabana Azmi) is naturally distraught as is the girl's mother. The two women plot against him causing great heartburn for all parties involved.

Apne Paraye (1980)

Sarat Chandra's novel Nishkriti inspired the film. Utpal Dutt a top lawyer in Kolkata adores his younger relative Chander (Amol Palekar). Chander is lazy and isn't interested in a permanent career and is solely interested in music. Sheela (Shabana Azmi) his wife practically rules the family and is considered rather severe.

Sheela and Chander are thrown out of the house with the help of her husband. Harish launches a lawsuit against them as well. Their lives have taken a turn for the worse. Only the eldest brother's intervention brings things back to normal. The film emphasizes the rivalry and politics of a joint family.

Sparsh (1980)

Anirudh (Naseeruddin Shah) a blind man is the principal of a school for the blind. He is very eager to make his children self-sufficient. He cherishes his self-esteem above everything else and despises being pitied. 

He meets Kavita (Shabana Azmi) a young widow at a party one day and the two build a friendship. She immediately begins volunteering at his school and eventually becomes a full-time teacher. They fall in love and even marry. Anirudh begins to mistrust their connection at this point.

He believes Kavita accepted the marriage out of pity rather than love. Disputes arise between them and it quickly becomes clear that one of them must quit the institution. The essence of this emotional picture is how they learn to reconnect.

Arth (1982)

We don't know if Arth was composed or directed. Mahesh Bhatt grabbed a page from his own book and weaved a tale around it. Shabana Azmi received her second National Film Award for her pivotal role in the film. Pooja is married to Inder (Kulbhushan Kharbanda) an egotistical film director (Shabana Azmi).

 He forms a fruitful relationship with actress Kavita (Smita Patil) and begins an affair with her. For the sake of Kavita Inder divorces Pooja. Pooja who is devastated is consoled by Raj a good-natured singer (Raj Kiran).

The confrontation sequence between Shabana and Smita was the film's high point with the former losing all inhibitions and going hammer and tongs on the lady she regards as a housebreaker.

Mandi (1983)

In the film Shabana plays the madam of a brothel who is extremely protective of her protege. One of the main focuses of this film is the connection between Rukminibai (Shabana Azmi) and Zeenat (Smita Patil); Rukminibai loves Zeenat like a daughter but feels threatened when Zeenat wants to establish her freedom. She finally became estranged from all of the ladies who worked for her and had to leave the brothel to make a new life for herself.

Shabana was widely praised for bringing out the nuances of a brothel keeper on her part. The film featured a dark comedy with colorful characters such as Tungrus (Naseeruddin Shah) a lusty photographer (Om Puri) a baba-like figure Amrish Puri a businessman with a secret (Saeed Jaffrey) a novice prostitute (Sreela Majumdar) and others.

Masoom (1983)

The film was based on Erich Segal's novel Man Woman and Child. Gulzar wrote both the story and the tunes. The plot centers around DK (Naseeruddin Shah) a happily married man (Shabana Azmi). They are the proud parents of two beautiful daughters Pinky and Mini (Urmila Matondkar and Aradhana).

When DK notices the uproar Rahul's entrance has caused he intends to send him to a boarding school. When Rahul discovers who DK truly is he flees. He does not want to abandon his father and Indu watching the upheaval forgives DK and accepts Rahul as a member of her family

Khandhar (1984)

It's written in the style of a Maupassant narrative and it centers around a group of friends who go for a picnic in some ruins only to discover a mother-daughter combo living there. The mother is blind and bedridden and she believes that one of the visits is a young man betrothed to her daughter which is not the case.

The group's photographer (Naseeruddin Shah) feels sorry for the girl (Shabana Azmi) and agrees to play along. The ruse however finds them all in stressful positions and they spend some dark brooding days in the ruins. Shabana earned another National Film Award for Best Actress for her performance in the film.

Paar (1984)

Play

It portrays the narrative of a young couple Naurangia (Naseeruddin Shah) and his wife Rama (Shabana Azmi) who are forced to abandon their village due to the landlord's cruelty (Utpal Dutt). They agree to herd a large flock of pigs across a flooded river while fleeing their enemies.

The perilous river crossing symbolizes all of life's hardships and trials. Both Shabana and Naseer performed admirably in the flick. Shabana received another National Award for her realistic performance.

Shabana Azmi's Upcoming Films

Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani

Shashank Khaitan and Sumit Roy wrote the screenplay and Ishita delivered the lines. Ranveer Singh Alia Bhatt and Preity Zinta act in the key roles with Shabana Azmi Dharmendra Jaya Bachchan Raj Sharma Garima Agarwal and many more appearing in supporting roles. The film's cinematography is handled by Manush Nandan and the score is written by Pritam Chakraborty.

Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani narrates the story of a heartfelt love story with a young guy from an affluent upper-class family who lives in a luxurious house in Gurgaon and a young woman from the middle class who lives in a crumbling fort much like a romantic drama.

Shabana Azmi's Career Timeline

Shabana Azmi TV Shows

Shabana Azmi's Controversies

Kangana Ranuat Controversy

Shabana Azmi a veteran actress criticized Kangana Ranaut for her recent statements on the ongoing hijab controversy in Karnataka.

Kangana Ranaut tweeted a screenshot of author Anand Ranganathan's tweet which said Iran. 1972 till the present. In fifty years she went from a bikini to a burqa. History repeats itself for those who do not learn from it. Kangana commented on the photo alongside it. If you want to demonstrate courage don't wear a burqa in Afghanistan she wrote. Learn to break free rather than confine yourself.

Shabana questioned Kangana on Twitter. Shabana commented on Kangana's tweet saying Correct me if I'm wrong but Afghanistan is a theocratic state and the last time I looked India was a secular democratic republic?!!

Shabana Azmi's Networth

Shabana Azmi has a net worth of $1.5 million.

Shabana Azmi's Social Work

She is well-known for her work as a social activist and relentless advocate for the rights of women slum dwellers and the impoverished. She is the founder of the Mijwan Welfare Society an NGO that strives to empower girls in rural India. MWS focuses on education primary health care and sanitation as well as skill development and job creation.

Azmi has been a dedicated social activist advocating for child survival and combating AIDS and injustice in the real world.

She has taken part in various anti-communist plays and demonstrations. She led a four-day march for communal unity from New Delhi to Meerut in 1989 together with Swami Agnivesh and Asghar Ali Engineer.

 Slum dwellers displaced Kashmiri Pandit migrants and victims of the Latur disaster are among the social groups for whom she has advocated (Maharashtra India). The 1993 Mumbai riots shocked her and she became a vocal opponent of religious fundamentalism. In an interview with Rungh in 1995 she reflected on her life as an activist.

She has worked to remove the stigmatization of AIDS victims. A little film clip published by the Government of India displays an HIV-positive child nestled in her arms and said: She does not need your rejection she needs your love. She plays a doctor treating AIDS patients in the Bengali film Meghla Akash directed by Nargis Akter.

Shabana Azmi's Awards

• In 1999 Shabana Azmi won the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image Significant Contribution to Indian Cinema.
• The University of Michigan bestowed the Martin Luther King Professorship on her in 2002 in celebration of her contributions to arts culture and society.
• In 2006 Shabana Azmi won Gandhi International Peace Award given by the Gandhi Foundation in London.
• In 2007 Shabana Azmi won The Akkineni International Foundation and presented the ANR National Award.
• In 2009 Shabana Azmi received the World Economic Forum's Crystal Award.
• In 2012 Shabana Azmi was honoured by the Walk of Stars when her handprint was archived for posterity at Mumbai's Bandra Bandstand.
• In 2008 Shabana Azmi won The National Indian Students Union UK and bestowed an Honorary Fellowship on me.
• The Government of Uttar Pradesh awarded Shabana Azmi the Yash Bhartiya Award in 1988 for her work as an actor and activist in addressing women's issues.
• Shabana Azmi won Rajiv Gandhi Award for Excellence in Secularism.
• 2003: Shabana was conferred with an honorary doctorate by the Jadavpur University in West Bengal in 2003.
• 2007: Shabana was conferred with an honorary doctorate in art by Chancellor of the University Brandan Foster by the Leeds Metropolitan University in Yorkshire
• 2008: Shabana was conferred with an honorary doctorate by the Jamia Milia Islamia in Delhi in 2008.
• 2013: Shabana was conferred with an honorary doctorate by Simon Fraser University.
• 2014: Shabana was conferred with an honorary doctorate by TERI University on 5 February 2014.

5 Interesting facts about Shabana Azmi

• She has appeared in almost 100 films and has received five National Awards and four Filmfare Awards for Best Actress.
• Her nieces are Bollywood actors Tabu and Farah Naaz.
• She has been a proactive socialist assisting slum residents displaced Kashmiri Pandit migrants and earthquake victims in Latur Maharashtra.
• In 1989 she led a four-day march for communal unity from New Delhi to Meerut.
• The Honorary Doctorate in Art was bestowed upon her by Chancellor of the University Brandan Foster of Leeds Metropolitan University in Yorkshire.

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