Kabhi Na Kabhi Alvida Toh Kehna Hi Padta Hai, Lekin Kabhi Kabhi Alvida Kehna Bahut Mushkil Hota Hai

I find it extremely difficult to believe what happened to me during the last two days . I was thinking about Shashikala , one of the most impressive woman I have met.

I wanted to write about her, but time gave me permission only to write about her work with Mother Teresa which I wrote and I postponed writing the entire article about her for another time- ALi Peter John

Little did I know that the time would come now when Shashikala is no more among the living and has left for some place no one knows anything about.

I find it difficult to know that I will never see a woman so full of life . I will know her for many things like many others know.

But the one thing I will always remember about her is her calling me " my three in one " ( she was naturally reacting to my name).

I will also remember her for all the grand birthday parties she celebrated on August 3 at her Queens Apartments residence on Pali Hill.

Her parties were mostly for her friends from the press and we all had a great time with her till we were drunk and kept thanking her for her personal love and care .

She had lived a tumultuous life with misery and pain being her constant companions , but she never let it show at any time.

Sixty five years ago , a eleven year old girl from a middle class Maharashtrian family came down with her family to save the family from falling into the pits of poverty because of the head of the family going bankrupt.

The little girl was not only pretty but was also a good dancer . Her family thought the girl could make a career in films and encouraged her to follow what was their passion in the beginning.

The girl kept walking around from studio to studio and finally found a tiny role in a film made by the husband of famous actress and singer Noor Jehan.

She was asked to join a group of girls singing s qawwaali. The director was so pleased with her work that he gave her a bakshish of 20 rupees which inspired the little Shashikala to pursue a career in acting.

It was the beginning of a career that was to create ripples and even little storms in the industry.

She was not ranked as any of the leading actresses of the time , but she worked with all the big stars of the time like Dilip Kumar Dev Anand and Pradeep Kumar, Uttam Kumar and Kishore Kumar among many others .

She had married a businessman called Om Sehgal who was inspired to produce a film called ,"Karodpati' co - starring Kishore Kumar and directed by Mohan Segal.

The film took years to make and finally "Karodpati'" turned the couple into paupers and Shashikala had to accept every kind of roles and even did stunt films and B grade historicals and mythologicals and devotionals .

It was when she was on the verge of giving up acting that Seth Tarachand Barjatya called her to play a vamp in the first film to be made under the banner of Rajshri Productions. The film was ,"Aarti " with Meena Kumari and Pradeep Kumar in key roles.

"AArti ," established the Rajshri banner and gave a new lease of life to everyone involved with it , but the one who was rewarded the most was Shashikala for her outstanding performance in a negative role.

She won a number of awards and critical acclaim for her performance, but what mattered to her most was the endless offers that came from leading banners to play similar roles which led to her being branded as ,"the bad woman of Hindi cinema"

It was when she was at the peak of her career at she separated from her husband and also lost her daughter to cancer.

It was during these dark , depressing and dreary times that her destiny led her to an unexpected destination.

She met Mother Teresa in her Ashram in Kalighat in Calcutta and surrende red herself to the Mother ( read the full story in the article alongside )

She was granted permission by the Mother to leave the Ashram . She came back to Bombay and was surprised to see any number of filmmakers waiting to cast her in different kinds of roles which she played with her own distinct style and class.

She kept busy working in films both in Hindi and Marathi and sometimes in Gujarati and was one of the most popular actresses of the world of television , a medium to which she got adapted very easily .

She was very active till the late 80s and her last good role was in "Mujhse Shaadi Karoge". She had by now worked in over hundred and fifty films but her best will always be known for her performances as a glamorous vamp.

There have been many other vamps after Shashikala , but there can never be another Shashikala.

EK ADAKAARA AISI KABHI KABHI HI AATI HAI AUR PHIR DILON MEIN REHKAR NIKAL JAATI HAI NA JAANE KAHAN