Tuesday 12 March 2013

Helen

Helen Jairag Richardson is an Indian film actress and dancer of Anglo-Burmese descent, working in Hindi films. She has appeared in over 500 films.[2] She is often cited as the most popular dancer of the item number in her time.[3] She was the inspiration for four films and a book
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Helen was born on November 21, 1939 in Burma to an Anglo-Indian father and Burmese mother.[5] She has a brother Roger and a sister Jennifer. Her father died during the Second World War. The family trekked to Mumbai in 1943 in order to escape from the Japanese occupation of Burma. Helen told Filmfare magazine during an interview in 1964, "we trekked alternately through wilderness and hundreds of villages, surviving on the generosity of people, for we were penniless, with no food and few clothes. Occasionally, we met British soldiers who provided us with transport, found us refuge and treated our blistered feet and bruised bodies and fed us. By the time we reached Dibrugarh in Assam, our group had been reduced to half. Some had fallen ill and been left behind, some had died of starvation and disease. My mother miscarried along the way. The survivors were admitted to the Dibrugarh hospital for treatment. Mother and I had been virtually reduced to skeletons and my brother's condition was critical. We spent two months in hospital. When we recovered, we moved to Calcutta".[6] Helen had to quit her schooling to support her family because her mother's salary as a nurse was not enough to feed a family of four.[5] In a documentary called Queen of the Nautch girls, Helen said she was 17 years old in 1957 when she got her first big break in Howrah Bridge.
Helen was introduced to Bollywood when a family friend, an actress known as Cukoo, helped her find jobs as a chorus dancer in the films Shabistan and Awara (1951). She was soon working regularly and was featured as a solo dancer in films such as Alif Laila (1954), Hoor-e-Arab (1953), and number "Mr. John O Baba Khan" in the film Baarish.
Helen got her break in 1958 when she performed the song "Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu" in Shakti Samanta's film, Howrah Bridge, which was sung by Geeta Dutt. After that, offers started pouring in throughout the 1960s and 1970s. During her initial career, Geeta Dutt sang many songs for her. The Bollywood playback singer Asha Bhosle also frequently sang for Helen, particularly during the 1960s and the early 70s.
She was nominated for the Filmfare best supporting actress award in 1965 for her role in Gumnaam. She played dramatic roles such as the rape victim in Shakti Samanta's Pagla Kahin Ka (1970).
Writer Salim Khan helped her get roles in some of the films he was co-scripting with Javed Akhtar: Imaam Dharam, Don, Dostana, and Sholay. This was followed by a role in Mahesh Bhatt's film Lahu Ke Do Rang (1979), for which she won a Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award. In 1999 Helen was given India's Filmfare lifetime achievement award.
Helen officially retired from movies in 1983, but she has since then appeared in a few guest roles such as Khamoshi: The Musical (1996) and Mohabbatein (2000). She also made a special appearance as the mother of real-life step-son Salman Khan's character in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Helen was selected for the Padma Shri awards of 2009 along with Aishwarya Rai and Akshay Kumar.
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Popular songs performed by Helen

  • "Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu" - Howrah Bridge (1958)
  • "Oyee Maa Oyee Maa Yeh Kya Ho Gaya" - Paras Mani (1963)
  • "Gham Chhod ke Manao Rang Relly" - Gumnaam (1965)
  • "O Haseena Zulfowali" - Teesri Manzil (1966)
  • "Aa Jaane Jaan" - Intaquam (1969)
  • "Piya Tu Ab To Aaja" - Caravan (1971)
  • "Ae Nujawan Hai Sab" - Apradh (1972)
  • "Aaj Ki Raat Koi Aane Ko Hai" - Anamika (1973)
  • "Mehbooba Mehbooba" - Sholay (1975)
  • "Mungda Main Gud Ki Dali" - Inkaar (1978)
  • "Yeh Mera Dil Pyaar Ka Diwana" - Don (1978)

Awards and honors


Posted by Unknown at 08:37
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