Daisy Irani Shukla (born 17 June 1950) is an Indian actress in

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

language films. She was a popular

child actor The term child actor or child actress is generally applied to a child acting on stage, television, or in film, movies. An adult who began their acting career as a child may also be called a child actor, or a "former child actor". Closely associa ...

in the 1950s and 1960s. She is most known for films such as ''Bandish'' (1955), '' Ek Hi Raasta'' (1956), '' Naya Daur'' (1957), '' Hum Panchhi Ek Daal Ke'' (1957), '' Jailor'' (1958), '' Qaidi No. 911'' (1959) and '' Do Ustad'' (1959). As a supporting actress, she acted in ''

Kati Patang () is a 1970 Indian Hindi-language musical drama film produced and directed by Shakti Samanta. The film stars Asha Parekh as a woman pretending to be a widow, and her ensuing trials and tribulations opposite her charming neighbour, played by R ...

'' in 1971. She also worked in a TV show '' Shararat'' (2003–2006).

Background and personal life

Irani was born into an Irani Zoroastrian family and her mother-tongue is Gujarati. She is the eldest of three sisters, the other two being Honey Irani and Menaka Irani. Her younger sister Honey, who was also a child-star, was married to script-writer

Javed Akhtar Javed Akhtar (born 1945) is an Indian screenwriter, lyricist and poet. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2007, two of India's highest civili ...

and their children are Bollywood film-makers

Farhan Akhtar Farhan Akhtar (born 9 January 1974) is an Indian actor, filmmaker and singer who works in Hindi films. Born to screenwriters Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani, he established the production company Excel Entertainment, along with Ritesh Sidhwa ...

and

Zoya Akhtar Zoya Akhtar (born 14 October 1972) is an Indian director, producer and screenwriter who works in Hindi films and series. Born to Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani, she completed a diploma in filmmaking from New York University, NYU and assisted dire ...

. Irani's other sister, Menaka, was married to the stunt film-maker Kamran Khan, and was the mother of film-makers Sajid Khan and

Farah Khan Farah Khan Kunder (; born 9 January 1965) is an Indian film director, writer, film producer, actress, dancer and choreographer who works predominantly in Hindi films. Khan has choreographed more than a hundred songs in over 80 films, winning th ...

. Daisy married screenwriter K. K. Shukla, on 21 January 1971 at age 21. He died in 1993. She acted as a child-star in industry. She has three children, a son named Kabir and two daughters, Varsha and Ritu. None of her children are involved with the entertainment industry in any capacity. Although born a Zoroastrian, Daisy grew interested in

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

later in life. In 1975, she became a member of New Life Fellowship in Mumbai. In 2018, Daisy revealed that she had been raped at the age of 6 by her "guardian" during the making of ''Hum Panchhi Ek Daal Ke'' (1957).

Career

During the Golden Age (1950s–70s) of Hindi cinema, some child stars had great visibility. The Irani sisters, Daisy and Honey, who generally played boys with curly hair, became household names. The films that had both of them fetched the biggest openings. Stories were re-written to include them in the cast or increase their footage, and they were prominently publicized in the promos of their movies. Their most-remembered movies, together or separate, include ''Bandish'', ''

Jagte Raho ''Jagte Raho'' () is a 1956 Hindi/ Bengali film, directed by Amit Maitra and Sombhu Mitra, written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, and produced by and starring Raj Kapoor. The film centers on the trials of a poor villager (Kapoor) who comes to a city ...

'', '' Bhai Bhai'', '' Naya Daur'', '' Hum Panchi Ek Daal Ke'', '' Musafir'', ''

Sahara The Sahara (, ) is a desert spanning across North Africa. With an area of , it is the largest hot desert in the world and the list of deserts by area, third-largest desert overall, smaller only than the deserts of Antarctica and the northern Ar ...

'', ''Duniya Na Mane'', '' Do Ustad'', '' Dhool Ka Phool'', '' Soorat Aur Seerat'' and ''Chandi Ki Diwar''. Daisy, who was more popular than her younger sister as a child artiste, continued to act after growing up, though not in any significant roles. She quit films after her marriage in 1971, with her last release being ''Kati Patang'' in 1971. In the 1980s, she worked in theatre for a while and started an acting school. After the death of her husband in the early 1990s, she returned to acting in the comedy TV series '' Dekh Bhai Dekh'' and films such as ''Aastha'' (1997), ''Kya Kehna'' and ''Shararat'' (2002). She appeared in nephew Sajid Khan's 2010 '' Housefull'' and thereafter in niece

's acting debut film ''

Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi ''Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi'' () is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film directed by Bela Bhansali Sehgal, starring Farah Khan, Boman Irani, Kavin Dave, Shammi, Kurush Deboo and Daisy Irani. The film takes its inspiration f ...

'' (2012), directed by Bela Sehgal.

Filmography

* ''

Bandish Bandish, cheez or gat is a fixed, melodic composition in Hindustani vocal or instrumental music. It is set in a specific raga, performed with rhythmic accompaniment by a tabla or pakhawaj, a steady drone, and melodic accompaniment by a sarangi, ...

'' (1955) * ''

'' (1956) * '' Ek Hi Raasta'' (1956) Raja * '' Devta'' (1956) * '' Bhai-Bhai'' (1956) Munna * ''Suvarna Sundari'' (1957) * '' Naya Daur'' (1957) * ''Musafir'' (1957) * '' Hum Panchhi Ek Daal Ke'' (1957) Chatpat * '' Bhabhi'' (1957) Mithu * '' Yaar Paiyyan'' (1957, Tamil) Poori * ''Talaaq'' (1958) * ''Sahara'' (1958) * ''Panchayat'' (1958) * ''Jailor'' (1958) * ''

Detective A detective is an investigator, usually a member of a law enforcement agency. They often collect information to solve crimes by talking to witnesses and informants, collecting physical evidence, or searching records in databases. This leads the ...

'' (1958) * '' Raj Tilak'' (1958) * '' Qaidi No. 911'' (1959) Guddu * ''Kangan'' (1959) * ''Duniya Na Mane'' (1959) * '' Do Ustad'' (1959) Raja * '' Dhool Ka Phool'' (1959) Ramesh * ''Chirag Kahan Roshni Kahan'' (1959) * '' Bhai Bahen'' (1959) * '' Kaithi Kannayiram'' (1960), credited as Baby Savithri * ''Kumkuma Rekha'' (1960) (Telugu) * ''

Sharabi ''Sharaabi'' () is a 1984 Indian Hindi-language Comedy drama, comedy drama film produced and directed by Prakash Mehra. This was Mehra's sixth film with Amitabh Bachchan. The dialogues were written by Kadar Khan. During an interview to film ex ...

'' (1964) * '' Arzoo'' (1965) * ''Kade Dhupp Kade Chhaan'' (1967) Punjani Movie * ''Nawab Sirazuddaula'' (1967) * '' Ankhen'' (1968) Lily * '' Talash'' (1969) * '' Pehchan'' (1970) Rani * ''

'' (1970) Ramaiah * '' Geet'' (1970) Laxminarayan's daughter * '' Jwala'' (1971) * '' Gomti Ke Kinare'' (1972) Chandni * '' Ahankaar'' (1995) Naina's Mom * '' Aastha: In the Prison of Spring'' (1997) Reena * '' Mujhe Meri Biwi Se Bachaao'' (2001) * '' Sanjivani'' (2002) Nurse Philo * '' Shararat'' (2002) Rani Devi * ''San Ge Hao Ren'' (2005) * '' Anjaane'' (2005) * '' Housefull'' (2010) Batook's mother * '' Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji'' (2011) June 's grandmother * ''

'' (2012) Nargis Pastakia * '' Happy New Year'' (2014) Namita Irani (Extended cameo appearance)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Irani, Daisy 1950 births Living people Irani (India) people 20th-century Indian actresses Indian film actresses Place of birth missing (living people) Actresses in Hindi cinema Indian child actresses Indian Christians Converts to Christianity from Zoroastrianism 21st-century Indian actresses Gujarati actresses Actresses in Tamil cinema