Birthday Special: 10 Notable Performances By Jaya Bachchan

The Bengali actress who had long hair, a sweet smile, and significant roles conquered the silver screen. Jaya Bachchan went on to star in some of the best Hindi films, including Guddi, Abhimaan, Chupke Chupke, Sholay, and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. During the 1970s and 1980s, she established herself as one of the most well-known actresses in the Indian film industry after making her acting debut in the 1963 film Mahanagar.

In the history of Hindi cinema, Jaya Bachchan is one of the best actresses. She is one of the actresses, who played a middle-class character or a rich character with ease making them immensely relatable.

As the actress celebrates her 75th birthday today, here are some of her most notable works in which she excelled in every role.

Guddi

Directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and written by Gulzar. Guddi was the film that established Jaya Bachchan — then known as Jaya Bhaduri — as a household star. Guddi is about the crush of a schoolgirl on Dharmendra. Jaya as Guddi was a breath of fresh air, thanks to her spontaneity, vivacious smile, and girl-next-door persona. It starred Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan and Utpal Dutt.

Mili

Directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Mili starred Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan and Ashok Kumar. The plot revolves around a solitary, unhappy man who falls in love with a lively young woman. Later, he discovers she has cancer. The titular role played by Jaya Bhaduri is what stands out most in the movie. The actress lit up the screen with her zeal. And her chemistry with Amitabh was on point throughout.

Abhimaan

Abhimaan is considered one of the major turning points in the career of the Amitabh-Jaya pairing. Directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, the film is about a popular musician who persuades his new wife to join him on stage, but his ego is bruised and jealousy takes control when she outshines him. For her performance, Jaya Bachchan won the prestigious Filmfare Award for Best Actress.

Kora Kagaz

Kora Kagaz is directed by Anil Ganguly. The plot centres around Archana and Sukesh getting married, much to her mother's dismay. The couple separated due to her mother's relentless intervention.

The film stars Vijay Anand, Jaya Bhaduri, A.K. Hangal, Achala Sachdev and Deven Verma. For this film, Jaya Bachchan won the prestigious Filmfare Award for Best Actress.

Chupke Chupke

Jaya stood out as Vasudha in this comedy caper. Chupke Chupke is a 1975 classic cult comedy that was a remake of the Bengali film Chhadmabeshi and was directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee. The film featured Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, Sharmila Tagore, Jaya Bachchan, Om Prakash, Usha Kiran, David Abraham Cheulkar, Asrani and Keshto Mukherjee.

Koshish

Koshish, which Gulzar directed, is regarded as one of the most incredible works of art in the Hindi film industry. The film stars Jaya and Sanjeev Kumar as a deaf and dumb couple who fight every odd to find their place in society. The film won two National Film Awards – Best Screenplay went to Gulzar and Best Actor went to Sanjeev Kumar.

Silsila

The 1981 cult classic Silsila was directed by Yash Chopra. The plot centres around the love triangle of Amit, a romantic playwright, Shobha, his wife, and Chandni, his ex. The events surrounding Amit and Shobha's marriage of compromise and his adulterous liaison with Chandni are chronicled in Silsila. The film starred Jaya Bachchan, Amitabh Bachchan, Rekha and Sanjeev Kumar in lead roles.

Uphaar

The 1971 Hindi movie, directed by Swarup Dutt and produced by Tarachand Barjatya for Rajshri Productions was based on Samapti (The End), a short story by Rabindranath Tagore. It was the first time in Indian cinema that a naive child-woman's development into emotional and sexual adulthood was portrayed. The movie was chosen as India's entry for the 45th Academy Awards' Best Foreign Language Film category, however, it was not accepted as a nominee.

Anamika

Raghunath Jalani directed Anamika, which was a combination of romance and suspense. Jaya portrayed a young girl with amnesia named Anamika in the title part. Following the release of this movie, Jaya gained popularity for taking on roles that allowed her acting talents to shine. Despite being most known for one of Lata Mangeshkar's most well-known songs, Bahon Mein Chale Aao, the movie has a lot going for it, especially the amazing chemistry between the leading actors. The film starred Jaya Bachchan alongside Sanjeev Kumar.

Nauker

Ismail Memon directed the 1979 film Nauker, which starred Jaya Bhaduri and Sanjeev Kumar in prominent roles. Jaya Bhaduri's portrayal of the maid Geeta in the film is arguably what audiences will remember most. This performance earned her her third Filmfare Award for Best Actress.