NIDAR, NIRBAHI AUR PHIR BHI NAAZUK NADIA KI GAJAB KI KAHANI.... BY ALI PETER JOHN

The thirties and forties were turbulent times all over the world and the shadows of war could be seen all over. And the world kept looking for superman and superwoman who could fight against war and help in bringing about peace in the world - Ali Peter John

The grim situation had turned men and women into brave human beings who could fight any kind of war personally, in groups and even by joining the armed forces.

And the entertainment world, especially films found heroes and heroines who could instill fearlessness in people and among the super fearless heroes and even heroines of the time were superman, batman and wonder woman (isn't it strange that after seventy or more years, we still have a strong fascination for characters like batman and superman and that films made with these highly imaginary characters are blockbusters hit all over the entertainment world?

It is in the circumstances during the time when the world was even unsure of where the war was leading the world to that a young and pretty woman called Mary Ann Evans from Australia made a big splash in the Hindi film industry which was still struggling to find a place of its own.

Mary wanted to be a singer and she sang in the choirs of churches. She was also interested in dance of all forms and took to bally dancing in which she was accepted as an expert and as a bally dancer of a high order.

She was a born gymnast and within no time she was a part of the world renowned Zorro Circus, where she was recognized by a film financier called Gruch Kanga who introduced her to the Wadia Brothers, J.B.H Wadia and Homi Wadia who were the owners of Wadia Movietone.

The brothers were impressed with Mary Ann Evans and decided to cast her in small roles in films like “Desh Deepak" and “NoorEyaman" and her performances as a daredevil woman who could jump from one floor to another, who could use the whip, guns and her own bare hands to fight the dacoit, villains and bad boys was appreciated by the Wadia Brothers and when she once leaped from one building to another, her director Homi Wadia changed her name to fearless Nadia.

She continued to do fifty more films, all of them as the daring and fearless Nadia. She took performing risks and stunts so sincerely that she once fell on her face and at another time was almost wiped away by a strong current while she was swimming.

Horse riding came to her like child's play, she could attract the wildest animals in the jungle with her wild call and cry, and she could play and even talk to tigers and lions.

All this about Nadia would make you feel or believe that she was not from this world, but from some other world created by some different gods, but, no, she was very much a part of this world, delicate, well mannered and who even went to church to pray.

She did her last stunt film in 1968 when she was all of sixty, but as the title of the film, “Khiladi" suggests, she was at her best when she performed her stunts.

She was growing old, all the risky stunts she had performed down the years had taken a heavy toll on her body and she had started looking old and had grown very weak, but she was still mentally alert, agile and alive.

In all the action and the stunts she performed in her film, she never failed to send across a message or two which spoke about the plight of women and how no nation could succeed or prosper or make progress unless women were given the freedom to be fearless and to be equal to man and join hands with man to fight every war, problems, crisis or cruel circumstances.

She had finally gone back to her birth place and after that nothing much has been heard about her. But there is a documentary based on her life made by her grand nephew Riyadh Vincy Wadia which tells the whole story about the first fearless stunt woman who could beat out even the great stuntman and even the khiladi actor of today.

AAJ JAB KANGANA RANAUT KI FILM DHAKAD RELEASE HONE JA RAHI HAI, NA SIRF KANGANA LEKIN AAJ KE SABHI HEROINE O KO FEARLESS NADIA KI FILMEIN DEKHNI CHAHIYE, KAM SE KAM UNKE BAARE KUCH PADHNA CHAHIYE. DHAKAD KYA HOTA HAI YEH UNKO JAAN LENA CHAHIYE.