Google paid tribute to the veteran actor and dancer Zohra Sehgal on September 29, Tuesday on the anniversary of her 1946 film, Neecha Nagar, which was released on Cannes Film Festival and had won the festival’s highest honour, the Palme d’Or prize.
Google remembered the iconic Bollywood actress and dancer with a special doodle illustrated by guest artist Parvati Pillai on its homepage. The Doodle showed the late actress in a classical dance posture wearing a pink saree with floral background.
Sahibzaadi Begum Zohra Mumtazullah Khan was born on April 27, 1912, in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh (British India). She enrolled in a prestigious ballet school in Dresden, Germany in her early 20s and joined Indian dance pioneer Uday Shankar and later toured internationally with the troupes. On her return to India, she joined the acting class from the Indian People’s Theatre Association in 1945.
In the year 1962, she moved to London and built an international profile, appearing in the British television series such as Doctor Who and the 1984 miniseries, The Jewel in the Crown. In the mid-90s, she returned to India and continued to work in Bollywood films and also appears on the stage. In 2002, on her 90th birthday, Segal appeared in her memorable role in the movie Bend it Like Beckham.
Zohra has a vast contribution to Bollywood with her last appearance in 2007 release ‘Saawariya’ directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and featured in movies like ‘Cheeni Kum’, ‘Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam’, ‘Dil Se’, ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham’ and ‘Veer Zaara’.
Some of the Nation’s highest awards honoured Sehgal. Padma Shri (1998), the Kalidas Samman (2001), and the Padma Vibhushan (2010).
Zohra Sehgal passed away at a ripe old age of 102 at her Delhi residence on July 10, 2014.
