Usha Kiran (22 April 1929 – 9 March 2000) was an Indian actress. In a career spanning over four decades, she acted in over 50 Hindi and Marathi films, notably '' Daag'' (1952), '' Patita'' (1953), '' Baadbaan'' (1954), '' Chupke Chupke'' (1975), '' Mili'' (1975) and '' Bawarchi'' (1972). She was also the

Sheriff of Mumbai The Sheriff of Bombay is an apolitical titular position of authority bestowed for one year on a prominent citizen of Bombay. The sheriff is an officer of the High Court and the nominal Head of the High Court Department which carries out the or ...

during 1996 and 1997.

Career

She began her acting career on stage with M.G. Rangnekar's Marathi play ''Ashirwad''. She entered the Hindi film industry with a small role in

Uday Shankar Uday Shankar (born Uday Shankar Choudhary; 8 December 1900 – 26 September 1977) was an Indian dancer and choreographer, best known for creating a fusion style of dance, adapting European theatrical techniques to Indian classical dance, imbu ...

's dance-drama film '' Kalpana'' (1948). She went on to act in numerous popular Hindi films such as '' Nazrana'' (1961), '' Daag'' (1952), and '' Baadbaan'' (1954), (for which she won the very first

Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress The Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress is given by ''Filmfare'' as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a female actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a supporting role. Although the Filmfare ...

in 1955), '' Kabuliwala'' (1961), '' Patita'' (1953), '' Mili'', '' Bawarchi'' (1972) and '' Chupke Chupke'' (1975). Her famous Marathi films include ''Shikleli Bayko'', ''Jasach Tase'', ''Postatli Mulgi'', ''Dudh Bhakar'', ''Stree Janma Hi Tuzi Kahani'', ''Kanyadaan'' (for which she received the Maharashtra Government's award for best actress), ''Gariba Gharchi Lek'', and ''Kanchanganga''. She starred opposite Hindi film actors such as

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and

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. He is often considered one of the greatest, most accomplished and commercially successful actors in the history of Indian cinema.* * * * * With a cinemati ...

. She died in

Nashik Nashik, formerly Nasik, is a city in the northern region of the Indian state of Maharashtra situated on the banks of the river Godavari, about northeast of the state capital Mumbai. Nashik is one of the Hindu pilgrimage sites of the Kumbh ...

at the age of 70.

Personal life

Usha was born into a

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India **Marathi people (Uttar Pradesh), the Marathi people in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Mar ...

-speaking family as Usha Balkrishna Marathe, daughter of Balkrishna Vishnu Marathe and his wife Radhabai Marathe. She was the second among five daughters. She was married to Dr. Manohar Kher, who became Dean of Sion Hospital in Mumbai. They were the parents of two children, a son, Advait Kher and a daughter, Tanvi Azmi. Usha Kiran's son Advait is a former model, now settled in

with his wife Uttara (who was

Femina Miss India Miss India, also known as Femina Miss India, is a national beauty pageant in India that selects representatives to compete in the Miss World competition, one of the Big Four international beauty pageants. It is organized by ''Femina (India), F ...

of 1982) and his two daughters Saunskruti Kher and

Saiyami Kher Saiyami Kher is an Indian actress who primarily works in Hindi and Telugu films. Kher made her acting debut with the Telugu film '' Rey'' (2015) and her Hindi debut with '' Mirzya'' (2016), for which she received Stardust Award for Superstar o ...

. Usha Kiran's daughter Tanvi Azmi is a well known television and film actress, married to cinematographer Baba Azmi, brother of

Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi (born 18 September 1950) is an Indian actress of film, television and theatre. Her career in the Hindi cinema, Hindi film industry has spanned Shabana Azmi filmography, over 160 films, mostly within independent and neorealist paral ...

.THE DYNAMIC DYNASTIES: What would the world of films be without them?
Screen, 22 September 2000.

Selected filmography

* '' Kalpana'' (1948) * ''Garibi'' (1949) * '' Vevishal'' (1949, credited Ushakumari, Gujarati) * ''Shri Krishna Darshan'' (1950) * ''Raj Rani'' (1950) * ''Gauna'' (1950) * ''Bhagwan Shri Krishna'' (1950) * ''Shri Vishnu Bhagwan'' (1951) * ''Sarkar'' (1951) * ''Maya Machhindra'' (1951) * '' Madhosh'' (1951) - Raina * ''Mard Maratha'' (1952) * ''Lal Kunwar'' (1952) * ''Dhobi Doctor'' (1952) * '' Daag'' (1952) - Pushpa 'Pushpi' * '' Patita'' (1953) - Radha * ''Husn Ka Chor'' (1953) * ''Dhuaan'' (1953) * ''Dost'' (1954) * ''Aulad'' (1954) * ''Shobha'' (1954) * ''Samaj'' (1954) * ''Badshah'' (1954) * '' Baadbaan'' (1954) * '' Adhikar'' (1954) - Usha * ''Oot Patang'' (1955) * ''Bahu'' (1955) * ''Guru Ghantal'' (1956) * ''Parivar'' (1956) * ''Ayodhyapati'' (1956) * ''Anuraag'' (1956) * ''Aawaz'' (1956) - Bela * ''Raja Vikram'' (1957) * '' Musafir'' (1957) - Uma * ''Jeevan Saathi'' (1957) * ''Dushman'' (1957) - Sheela * ''Trolley Driver'' (1958) * ''Shikleli Baiko'' (1959) * ''Saata Janmachi Sobti'' (1959) - Pramila Jadhav / Pramila M. Mohite * '' Mendi Rang Lagyo'' (1960) - Alka * ''Kanyadaan'' (1960) * '' Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere'' (1960) - Prema * '' Kabuliwala'' (1961) - Rama, Mini's mother * ''Tanhai'' (1961) * '' Nazrana'' (1961) - Geeta * ''Mansala Pankh Astat'' (1961) * ''Amrit Manthan'' (1961) * ''Gharni Shobha'' (1963) * '' Gehra Daag'' (1963) - Usha * '' Bawarchi'' (1972) - Shobha Sharma * ''Badi Maa'' (1974) * '' Chupke Chupke'' (1975) - Sumitra Sharma * '' Mili'' (1975) - Sharda Khanna * ''Lage Bandhe'' (1979) * ''Fatakadi'' (1980) - Laxmi Narayan * '' Chambal Ki Kasam'' (1980) - Jamuna Devi * '' Samraat'' (1982) - Mrs. Chawla * ''Mehndi'' (1983) - Gautam's mom * '' Bahurani'' (1989) - Mrs. Laxmi Chaudhary (Amit's Mom) (uncredited)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kiran, Usha Indian film actresses Actresses in Hindi cinema 1929 births 2000 deaths 20th-century Indian actresses Actresses from Mumbai Actresses in Marathi cinema Sheriffs of Mumbai Filmfare Awards winners