Firoza Begum was a Jewish Indian actress. Firoza starred in several Bollywood and Mollywood films. [1] She was very popular in the 1920s and 1930s. [2] Although there were other Jewish actresses at the time, she stands out along with other notables like Ruby Myers and Esther Victoria Abraham (Pramila). [3] [4] [5]
Born Susan Solomon, she is of Bene Israel heritage. She used the Muslim name Firoza Begum to hide her Jewish ancestry [6] (see History of the Jews in India). She was one of five famous Jewish Indian actresses featured in the documentary Shalom Bollywood: The Untold Story of Jews and Bollywood by Danny Ben-Moshe released in 2017. [7]
Madhuri Dixit Nene is an Indian actress and television personality. She has appeared in over 70 Hindi films, attaining nationwide stardom that influenced Indian popular culture. Noted by critics for her beauty, dancing skills, and characters, Dixit was credited for singularly paralleling her male contemporaries by leading star vehicles in a male-dominated industry. Her accolades include six Filmfare Awards from a record 17 nominations. In 2008, the Government of India awarded her with Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian honour of the country.
Manisha Koirala is a Nepalese actress who works in Indian films, predominantly in Hindi and Tamil. Born to the politically prominent Koirala family, she is the daughter of Prakash Koirala and the granddaughter of Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala, and a recipient of several accolades, including three Filmfare Awards, one Filmfare Awards South and one Filmfare OTT Awards. In 2001, the Government of Nepal awarded her with the Order of Gorkha Dakshina Bahu.
The Bene Israel, also referred to as the "Shanivar Teli" or "Native Jew" caste, are a community of Jews in India. It has been suggested that they are the descendants of one of the Ten Lost Tribes via their ancestors who had settled there centuries ago. Starting in the second half of the 18th century, after they were taught about normative Sephardi Judaism, they migrated from villages in the Konkan region where they had previously lived to nearby cities throughout British India—primarily to Mumbai where their first synagogue opened in 1796 but also to Pune, Ahmedabad, and Karachi, where they gained prominent positions within the British colonial government and the Indian Army.
Madhubala was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi films. The country's highest-paid star in the 1950s, Madhubala appeared in over 70 films—ranging from slapstick comedies to historical dramas—in a two decade-long career. Long after her death, she remains a Bollywood icon, particularly noted for her beauty and unconventional screen persona.
Nargis Dutt known mononyomusly as Nargis was an Indian actress and politician who worked in Hindi cinema. Regarded as one of the finest and greatest actresses in the history of Indian cinema, Nargis often portrayed sophisticated and independent women in a range of genres, from screwball comedy to literary drama. These performances earned her various accolades.
Sharmila Tagore also known by her married name Begum Ayesha Sultana, is an Indian actress primarily known for her work in Hindi and Bengali films. Regarded among the greatest actresses in the history of Indian cinema, she is known for portraying both traditional and modern women. Tagore is a recipient of two National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award and the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2013, the Government of India, honoured her with Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian honour for her contributions to Indian culture through performing arts.
The history of the Jews in India dates back to antiquity. Judaism was one of the first foreign religions to arrive in the Indian subcontinent in recorded history. Rabbi Eliezer ben Jose of the 2nd-century CE mentions the Jewish people of India in his work Mishnat Rabbi Eliezer, saying that they are required to ask for rain in the summer months, during their regular rainy season, yet make use of the format found for winter in the Standing Prayer, and to cite it in the blessing, 'Hear our voice'. Desi Jews are a small religious minority who have lived in the region since ancient times. They were able to survive for centuries despite persecution by Portuguese colonizers and nonnative antisemitic inquisitions.
Waheeda Rehman is an Indian actress. Regarded as one of Hindi cinema's most accomplished actresses, she has worked in more than 90 feature films, in a career spanning over five decades. Her accolades include a National Film Award and three Filmfare Awards. She was honoured with India's civilian awards; the Padma Shri in 1972 and the Padma Bhushan in 2011. In 2021 she was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India's highest award in the field of cinema, but was awarded in 2023.
Smita Patil was an Indian actress who primarily worked in Hindi and Marathi films. Regarded among the finest and greatest actresses in the history of Indian cinema, she was known for her unconventional portrayal of strong and independent women. Patil appeared in over 80 films, in a career that spanned over a decade and was the recipient of two National Film Awards, a Filmfare Award, a Maharashtra State Film Award and two Filmfare Awards Marathi. In 1985, Patil received the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honour.
Ruby Myers, better known by her stage name Sulochana, was an Indian silent film actress of Jewish ancestry, from the community of Baghdadi Jews in India.
Meera Chopra is an Indian actress and model who appears in Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi-language films. In Tamil films, she is credited as Nila. She went to SGTB Khalsa College, Delhi University, but later dropped out of college to pursue her career in movies.
Danny Ben-Moshe is a documentary film maker and an associate professor at Deakin University in Melbourne, Australia. He has produced and directed several critically praised documentaries.
Esther David is an Indian Jewish author, an artist and a sculptor. She is a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award.
Aditi Rao Hydari is an Indian actress who works primarily in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu films. Born into the Tyabji–Hydari family, she made her film debut with the Malayalam film Prajapathi (2006). She received attention for her roles in Delhi 6 (2009) and Yeh Saali Zindagi (2011), for which she won her first Screen Award. She subsequently appeared in Rockstar (2011), the horror film Murder 3 (2013), Boss (2013), and the thriller Wazir (2016), as well as the period drama Padmaavat (2018), which was commercially successful and earned her an IIFA Award.
Gauahar Khan is an Indian actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She is Winner of Bigg Boss season 7, Gauhar appears in Hindi films and television. She started her career as a model and participated in the Femina Miss India contest in 2002.
Pallavi Sharda is an Australian actress and Bharathanatyam dancer of Indian descent. She won the Miss India Australia beauty pageant in 2010. As an actress she is best known for her role in the Academy Award nominated film Lion (2016). She has also starred in Hindi language films Besharam (2013), Hawaizaada (2015) and Begum Jaan (2017). She starred in the Australian film Save Your Legs! (2012) and the Australian teleseries Les Norton (2019). Since 2021, Sharda has starred in Tom & Jerry, The Twelve and the rom-com Wedding Season.
Anjali Patil is an Indian actress who works in Hindi, Marathi, Telugu and Tamil film productions. She has received several awards including a National Film Award and a Filmfare Marathi Award. She received the IFFI Best Actor Award (Female) Silver Peacock Award at the 43rd International Film Festival of India her role in the Sri Lankan film With You, Without You
Queen is an iconic female centric 2014 Indian Hindi-language comedy-drama film directed by Vikas Bahl and produced by Anurag Kashyap, Vikramaditya Motwane, and Madhu Mantena. The film stars Kangana Ranaut in the lead role, with Lisa Haydon and Rajkummar Rao playing supporting roles. The film follows the story of Rani Mehra, a diffident Punjabi girl from New Delhi who embarks on her honeymoon to Paris and Amsterdam by herself after her fiancé calls off their wedding.
Rekha: The Untold Story is a 2016 Indian biographical book by Yasser Usman, detailing the life of Indian film actress Rekha. The book chronicles her birth to South Indian actors Gemini Ganesan and Pushpavalli, which generated rumors in the media at the time, her well-publicised marriage to Delhi-based industrialist Mukesh Agarwal, who died by suicide in seventh months of marriage, and her fifty-year-long acting career.
Yasser Usman is an Indian television journalist, author, news presenter, and biographer. He began his career by working as a television presenter and was awarded the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award for his contribution. Usman has been recognised by the media as one of India's most successful film biographers.