Tanuja Samarth, popularly known as Tanuja, is a famous Indian actress known for her exceptional work in both Hindi and Bengali films such as Memdidi (1961), Chand Aur Suraj (1965), Haathi Mere Saathi (1971) and Do Chor (1972). She is also the mother of famous Indian actresses Kajol and Tanishaa.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Tanuja was born in 1943 (age 80 years; As of 2023) in Bombay Presidency, British India (now Mumbai, Maharashtra, India), in a Marathi family. Tanuja’s childhood was centered around films and cameras as four generations of Samarth’s family were part of the film industry.
Little Tanuja (extreme right) with her mother and siblings
His keen interest in movies was naturally embedded in his genes due to his parents. As a high school graduate, he attended St. Joseph’s, Panchgani, India, and St. George’s, Switzerland, to obtain his formal qualifications. It took Tanuja seconds to transition into her natural avatar in an era when actresses refused to wear Sati Savitri attire even after wrapping up. He didn’t feel the need to add Coke to his drink or duck into the restroom for a quick breather. He also broke new ground as a performer by dressing underrated people. There is no coquettish excess here. Tanuja has always been indifferent to both tradition and competitiveness, being a friend to her co-stars and a non-rival to her fierce rivals.
Physical appearance
Height (approx): 5′ 1″
Hair color: natural black
Eye Color: Newborn Gray
family
parents and siblings
Tanuja’s mother Shobna Samarth was an actress and her father Kumarsen Samarth was a film director; He himself started his career at the age of 5.
Film director Kumarsen Samarth and actress Shobna Samarth
Tanuja has three sisters and one brother. One of his sisters, Nutani, is also an actress.
Tanuja with her elder sister Nutani
Tanuja with sister Chatura Samarth
Tanuja’s mother, Shobhana, produced the debut films for Tanuja and Nutani. His other sisters are Chatura, an artist, and Reshma, and his brother is Jaydeep, none of whom pursued an acting career. His parents divorced in his early childhood. Tanuja said in an interview that her parents divorced when her brother was still a child. He was quoted as saying:
My parents separated before my brother was born: When my parents went their separate ways, Jade wasn’t born yet. Although they were no longer husband and wife, they were still mother and father to us. In fact, father came to meet us almost every day. Around then, my mother decided that I should go to St. George’s School in Switzerland because I had an aptitude for languages. When I was in Switzerland, my father wrote to me in German, and I always replied in German. “
Tanuja with her brother Jaydeep Samart
husband and children
Tanuja met late filmmaker Shomu Mukherjee on the sets of her film Ek Baar Muskura Do (1972) and the two fell in love instantly and married in 1973.
Tanuja and Shomu Mukherjee
The couple had their first child, Kajol, in 1974, and later their second child, Tanishaa, in 1978.
Tanuja with her daughters Tanishaa and Kajol
Shomu Mukherjee with his daughters Tanishaa and Kajol
However, it wasn’t for very long for Tanuji and Shomu Mukherjee. The disagreement between the two led to the separation of the couple. Despite the situation, they both decided to parent their two daughters.
other relatives
Tanuja is the aunt of some famous Bollywood names like Mohnish Bahl (actor), Ayan Mukherjee (director), Sujoy Mukherjee (actor) and Rani Mukherjee (actress). Ratan Bai, his grandmother, and Nalini Jeevant, his cousin, were also actors.
Tanuja with daughter Tanishaa and actor Rani Mukherjee
Career
movie
Tanuja began her career with her elder sister Nutani in the debut film Humari Beti (1950), which was produced by their mother Shobna Samarth.
Tanuja’s debut movie poster
Tanuja’s first film. Humari Betty
A decade later, in 1960, another of their in-house productions was called Chabil. Unfortunately, none of these publications did a good job of revealing their identity. The turning point in Tanuja’s career was her film, Humari Yaad Aayegi (1961), directed by Kidar Sharma, the man behind the unbeaten careers of Raj Kapoor and Madhubala. Tanuja did not limit herself to Hindi films as she started working in Bengali and Marathi films simultaneously and left her mark as soon as she could. Although Tanuja’s career has been full of turbulence and pit stops, she has not backed down. That’s when Do Duni Chari, starring the legendary Kishore Kumar, happened, in which Tanuja was praised immensely for her amazing comic timing. Tanuja was also part of Antony Firingee, an Indian biographical musical drama film directed by Sunil Banerjee in 1967 starring Uttam Kumar and Tanuja as the lead actresses. The film did exceptionally well at the box office due to its unique concept.
Later in 1969, with its amazing storyline, Jain Ki Raa bought Jeetendra and Tanuja together on screen and hit the box office like no other. That’s when Tanuja knew there was no stopping. After her release from films, Tanuja is still pursuing her passion for acting and is doing wonders for herself.
television
Tanuja started her television journey in 1985 with a serial titled ‘Khandaan’ which aired on Doordarshan. It achieved phenomenal viewership and aimed to be the first long-running soap opera on Indian television. Later in 1994, Tanuja was transferred to another serial – ‘Junoon’. It originally aired on Doordarshan and aired for five years, setting the record for the “longest running prime-time program” on Doordarshan. In 2008, Tanuja starred as a judge alongside daughter Kajol and son-in-law Ajay Devgn in Zee Tv’s family dance series Rock-N-Roll Family.
Tanuja, Ajay Devgn and Kajol in the rock and roll family
In 2017, Tanuja entered the historical fantasy TV series – ‘Aarambh: Kahaani Devsena Ki’, produced by Rose Audio Visuals and aired on Star Plus.
Tanuja Aarambshi – Kahani Devsena
Awards, nominations and honors
- Best Supporting Actress for Paisa Ya Pyaar (1970)
- Best Actress for Adalat o Ekti Meye (1981)
- Nominated for Best Supporting Actor for The Dear Thief (1968)
- Filmfare Life Achievement Award (2014)
Tanuja receives actor Amitabh Bachchan’s Lifetime Achievement Award
- Bengal Film Journalists Association Awards for Best Supporting Actress (Hindi), Benazir (1964)
- 20th Life OK Screen Awards for Best Actress for the Marathi film Pitruroon (2013)
- Apsara Film & Television Producers Guild Award- Lifetime Achievement Honor (2014)
Facts/Trivia
- Tanuja is known to be an avid smoker and drinker. He is often seen smoking in public places.
- Tanuja met Italian man Pier Franco Jaccardi during her Swiss days. He even experienced his first kiss with her.
- Tanuja slapped Dharmendra while filming Chand aur Suraj (1965) because the latter tried to flirt with her.
- Tanuja did not like the way her voice sounded when she first saw the directions of her first film.
- Tanuja wanted to enroll in diplomatic education.
- Tanuja returned from Switzerland after five years due to financial crisis in her family.
- Tanuja was all about ‘breaking the rules’ while on the sets.
- Tanuja was a very strict parent and used to beat Kajol regularly.
- Tanuja doesn’t watch her or anyone else’s movies except Kajol.
Categories: Bollywood
Source: dienchau2.edu.vn
