Ila Arun is an Indian actress, TV personality and

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; Literal translation, lit. 'Land of Kings') is a States and union territories of India, state in northwestern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the List of states and union territories of ...

folk-pop Folk-pop is a broad Music genre#Subtypes, musical fusion genre that includes contemporary folk songs with pop music, pop arrangements, and pop songs with intimate, acoustic music, acoustic-based folk music, folk arrangements. Folk-pop has been ...

singer known for her works in

Hindi cinema Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

, and

Indian pop Indian pop music, also known as I-pop or Indi-pop, refers to pop music produced in India that is independent from filmi soundtracks for Indian cinema. Indian pop is closely linked to Bollywood, Tollywood, Pollywood, Kollywood and the Asian ...

. She has appeared in many prominent

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

films such as '' Lamhe'', ''

Jodhaa Akbar ''Jodhaa Akbar'' is a 2008 Indian Hindi-language historical drama film directed by Ashutosh Gowariker. It stars Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the titular roles. Set in the 16th century, the film shows the fictional life and lo ...

'', '' Shaadi Ke Side Effects'' and '' Begum Jaan''.

Personal life

Arun was born on 15 March 1954 in a Kanyakubja Brahmin family of

Jodhpur Jodhpur () is the second-largest city of the north-western Indian state of Rajasthan, after its capital Jaipur. As of 2023, the city has a population of 1.83 million. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Jodhpur district and ...

in Rajasthan. She hails from

Jaipur Jaipur (; , ) is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and the List of cities and towns in Rajasthan, largest city of the north-western States and union territories of India, Indian state of Rajasthan. , the city had ...

. She is the sister of Piyush Pandey and Prasoon Pandey. Her mother was Bhagwati Pandey. Ila Arun is the mother of Ishitta Arun.

Playback singing

Arun has sung numerous film songs in Hindi and quite a few South Indian languages such as Tamil and Telugu. Her most famous film song to date has been " Choli Ke Peeche" sung along with

Alka Yagnik Alka Yagnik (born 20 March 1966) is an Indian playback singer who works predominantly in Hindi cinema. One of the most prominent singers of 1990s era Bollywood, she has received several accolades, including two National Film Awards, two Ben ...

for the film '' Khalnayak'' starring

Madhuri Dixit Madhuri Dixit Nene (Maiden and married names, née Dixit, ; born 15 May 1967) is an Indian actress and television personality. She has appeared in Madhuri Dixit filmography, over 70 Hindi films. Praised by critics for her performances and danc ...

, for which they won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer. The song created controversy due to the inappropriate lyrics and Arun was told by certain people not to sing the song at her public performances. Another song which she is famous for is "Ghup Chup" from the film '' Karan Arjun''. She also is well known for her song "Morni Baaga Ma Bole" accompanied with

Lata Mangeshkar Lata Mangeshkar (; born Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential singers of the Indian subcontinent. He ...

, in the movie '' Lamhe'', starring Sridevi. She has lent her voice to the Tamil song "Muthu Muthu Mazhai", for the film '' Mr. Romeo'', composed by

A. R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967), also known by the initialism ARR, is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and philanthropist known for his works in Indian cinem ...

. Her last noteworthy song was also with Rahman composed for the internationally acclaimed film ''

Slumdog Millionaire ''Slumdog Millionaire'' is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel '' Q & A'' (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It narrates the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. Starring Dev Patel ...

'', called " Ringa Ringa".

Singles/Albums

She has produced several successful singles such as "Vote for Ghagra". She also sang the promotional hit song ''Halla Bol'' for the Rajasthan Royals team in the

Indian Premier League The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in India, organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Founded in 2007, it features ten city-based Professional sports league organization, fr ...

She hails from

and sings Rajasthani songs in her albums and movies.

Acting

Arun was first seen acting in ''Lifeline (Jeevanrekha)'' a Hindi TV serial on life of doctors, along with Tanvi Azmi on

Doordarshan Doordarshan (), abbreviated as DD, is India's State-owned enterprise, state-owned public broadcasting, public television broadcaster. Established by the Government of India on 15 September 1959, it is owned by the Ministry of Information and B ...

. She delivered an electrifying performance in the 2008 hit ''

'' as Maham Anga, Akbar's shrewd wet nurse and political advisor. She has also acted in supporting roles in films such as '' China Gate'', '' Chingari'', '' Well Done Abba'', '' Welcome to Sajjanpur'', '' West is West'' and '' Ghatak''. In '' Shaadi Ke Side Effects'' and '' Begum Jaan'', she played a governess and a brothel member, respectively. In " Raat Akeli Hai", which is a Netflix movie and released on 31 July 2020, she has played the role of mother of the Hero "

Nawazuddin Siddiqui Nawazuddin Siddiqui (; born 19 May 1974) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a National Film Award, an IIFA Award, and two Filmfare Awards, as well as a nomination for an ...

" and correctly delivered the dialogues in local dialect. Arun has been a part of the early years of Indian television Industry, acting in the 1980s '' Bharat Ek Khoj'' and ''

Yatra ''Yatra'' (, ), in Indian religion, Indian-origin religions, Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, generally means a pilgrimage to holy places such as confluences of River#Sacred rivers, sacred rivers, Sacred mountains#India, sacred mount ...

.'' She also took on the role of Hansa Mehta, an independence activist who was part of the advisory committee of the constituent assembly, in '' Samvidhaan'' which is a TV mini-series based on the making of the Constitution of India.

Discography

Filmography

As actress

As singer

"Payal Utaar Dungi" Film: Mohabbat ki Arzoo 1994 Music Director : Laxmikant Pyarelal

As music director

*1992 – '' Mujhse Dosti Karoge'' *1991 – '' Rukmavati Ki Haveli'' *1985 – '' Doongar Ro Bhed''

Television appearances

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arun, Ila 1954 births Living people Actresses from Jaipur Musicians from Jaipur Singers from Rajasthan Women musicians from Rajasthan Rajasthani people Indian folk singers Indian women folk singers Hindi-language singers Bollywood playback singers Tamil playback singers Indian women playback singers Indian folk-pop singers Indian film actresses Indian television actresses Indian stage actresses Actresses in Hindi cinema Actresses in Hindi television Filmfare Awards winners Indian expatriate actresses in the United Kingdom 20th-century Indian actresses 21st-century Indian actresses 20th-century Indian women singers 20th-century Indian singers 21st-century Indian women singers 21st-century Indian singers Actresses in Urdu cinema Indian web series actresses