Film Industry and Troubled Life of Actresses!

Marriage is a pious bond, but when one partner starts to cheat, it becomes difficult to carry on. Still, there are many women, who choose to remain silent and never talk about their troubled life. In the film industry, there are many cases of unsuccessful marriages, exploitation, troubled life and unhappy endings. Especially, many actresses of the 60s and 70s have seen tough times in their lives.

Some actresses are lucky to marry their heartthrob like Udita Goswami, who married her love Mohit Suri and Geeta Basra, who married cricketer Harbhajan Singh. Some actresses even choose a different career path. Rajashree Shantaram, Alka, Neeta Mehta, Bhavna Bhatt, Ranjeeta and Radha Saluja to name a few, who moved far away from the glitter of the film industry.

However, not everyone is fortunate enough. There are many actresses, like Jia Khan and Nafisa Joseph, who ended their life due to issues in their personal life.

Today, the scenario is different, but it has not changed entirely. Here is a list of some yesteryear’s actresses and some new-age actresses who faced deception from their spouses or family –

M. N. Rajam – This famous actress of Tamil cinema was highly respected, and she managed to stay away from scandals. She married playback singer and actor A. L. Raghavan. Her husband wasted her money in producing Tamil films which didn’t perform well at the box office. She endured it for years but never complained about it.

Bhumika Chawla – The actress who played the role of M. S. Dhoni’s elder sister in his biopic, faced a similar situation like Rajam. As per reports, her husband Bharat Thakur invested her money in yoga ventures but failed. Bhumika, however, chooses to remain silent.

Helen – Veteran actress Helen was in a relationship with P. N. Arora for many years. They never married though. Helen faced a lot of mental stress and their animosity took them to court. Arora left Helen penniless. Helen found love again and today, Helen is happily married to scriptwriter Salim Khan.

Sharon Prabhakar – Bollywood singer Sharon Prabhakar gave hits like Meri jaisee haseena. She got married early in life and her first husband cheated her by investing her money and bought assets in his name, without telling her. Sharon, however, was wise and got separated from him. Her second marriage to adman Alque Padamsee did not end well.

Nutan - If rumors are to be believed, Nutan had to drag her mother to court, but it was her husband Captain Rajnish Behl who was behind this. There were reports that Nutan wanted to marry Sanjeev Kumar and was planning to leave her husband. There were also gossips that when Behl heard of Nutan and Sanjeev Kumar, he threatened Nutan and told her that he would harm their son. But how much of this is true is not known. Nutan, however, put an end to her link-up with Sanjeev Kumar, when she slapped him on sets of film Gauri. Some say that she did so to make peace with her husband. Her husband even ensured that Nutan cut off all ties with her family – parents, sisters and brother.

Pushpavalli – The partner of this Telugu actress from the yesteryears, Gemini Ganeshan, cheated on his wife and had an affair with her instead. They didn’t marry and they had a daughter, Rekha. However, he did not acknowledge his paternity during Rekha’s childhood and she never forgave her father for this. Rekha has made a name for herself in Bollywood. Rekha is close to her step-sisters.

Meena Kumari – It is said that the beautiful actress of the last century, Meena Kumari was exploited by her husband and even her father. It is even said that men used her for their selfish ends.

M S Subbulakshmi - Although this renowned classical singer and awardee of Bharat Ratan were grateful to her husband Sadashivam for marrying her, knowing her family background, she could not express her views in front of him. Sadashivam was a man of fierce anger and was obstinate in financial matters. Everything that Subbalakshi earned was handed over to her husband without any questions or second opinion. She had spent the last days of her life in modest circumstances in a small home with minimum amenities, as compared to her palatial home where she lived during the peak of her career.

Vimi – This beautiful actress started her career as a radio jockey. Her parents disowned her when they learned her inclination towards acting. She was exploited by her husband Shiv. She was even exploited in Bollywood. Slowly movie offers dried up and income became scarce. When she died in 1977, there was no one at her funeral. She had such a tragic fate despite the fact that she had two children. Today, no one remembers her, except when Humraaz songs are played on television.

Devika – This actress of Tamil cinema died early leaving her young daughter alone. She was married to Devdas and had a disastrous marriage.

Srividya – Classical vocalist ML Vasanthakumari’s daughter Srividya, acted in two Hindi movies in the 70s and became extremely successful in Tamil and Malayalam cinema. Her image was spoiled due to affairs with multiple actors. Rumors state that her marriage to a man from Kerala happened in haste and he exploited and harassed her. Srividya had to pay large sums of money to get divorced from her husband.

Asha Sachdev – She is remembered for her role as a dumb friend of Neetu Singh in the movie Priyatama. She had a tough married life and had to escape from it. She even stated that her entire family, including her stepbrothers and sisters, lived on her earnings.