Aneeta Ayoob

QAMYAB – THE FORGOTTEN GEMS OF BOLLYWOOD

Qamyab is our humble tribute to all those lesser-known actors, one hit wonders and junior artists who we see umpteen times but don’t know about; beyond their faces. These actors have been an integral part of Bollywood but didn’t get their due. This series is our sincere attempt to put a name to these faces, familiarize them to our readers and celebrate their achievements in life – however big or small. We believe that every artist contributes in his/her own way to the cinema’s success. Qamyab will explore the unknown lives of such actors and artists as we believe even these forgotten gems of Bollywood deserve their due recognition today.

Controversies are said to be part and parcel of any actor’s life. Torrid affairs, addiction to vices, cat fights, manipulations, etc are the common issues discussed about them in the media. But it is a rare instance when the topic of controversy is so sinister that it wrecks an actor’s career forever. Sanjay Dutt bore the brunt when he got arrested in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case. Our actor for today has attracted huge controversies right from her early age, which nipped her acting career in the bud. Her name is Aneeta Ayoob (also written as Anita Ayub or Anita Ayoob).

Aneeta was born in Karachi, Pakistan in the mid ’70s. She was discovered by the legend of Bollywood- Dev Anand- in the early ’90s and he decided to cast her in his film titled Pyar Ka Taraana (1993). This film revolved around four youngsters and remains a rare instance when Dev Saahab didn’t act in his own directorial movie. Aneeta had the plum lead role of a beautiful girl wooed by the two heroes played by Manu Gargi and Akshay Anand.

Even before the movie’s release, Aneeta’s beautiful looks became talk of the town and she appeared on cover page of all film magazines of that time. In fact, Aneeta had started out as a model and represented her country Pakistan in Miss Asia Pacific International beauty contest held in Manilla, Philippines in 1989. Unfortunately, controversy followed her there as well and she was forced to withdraw from the pageant due to her remark on polygamy during the event.

Coming to Pyar Ka Taraana, the film released in India in 1993 and attracted flak from the audience and critics alike, for its unabashed depiction of the nudist beaches of Denmark. The movie bombed badly at the box office but Aneeta got noticed in her lead role. Her name also appeared on screen in a unique way with waves stroking the beach shore to create the words “Aneeta Ayoob”.

Producers started queuing her home to sign her for more Hindi films when another controversy struck her. Rumours about her connections with the underworld started circulating in the media. Some malicious news reports even labelled her a Pakistani spy.

In these tough times, her mentor Dev Anand came to her rescue and cast her in his next film Gangster (1995) in which he played the titular role. Gangster dealt with the serious issue of rape and had an elaborate gangrape sequence filmed on Aneeta Ayoob. The film released in the Diwali week of 1995 clashing with two other biggies – Aditya Chopra’s Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and the Madhuri Dixit starrer Yaraana. Gangster ended being a box office disaster with critics panning it as highly exploitative cinema.

Around the same time, a certain political party in Maharashtra started targeting Pakistani artists working in India and Aneeta Ayoob also came on their radar. Her working visa in India was not extended and Aneeta had no option but to leave India forever.

Prior to working in Bollywood, Aneeta had worked in the popular TV series in Pakistan called Gardish (1987). She had also acted in a few Pakistani TV series like Hasina-E-Alam (1992) and Doosra Raasta (1995). Her two Pakistani films as an actor, are Chaltee Ka Naam Gaari (1994) and Sub Ke Baap (1994).

On the personal front, Aneeta married Soumil Patel, an Indian Gujarati businessman in the mid ’90s. She settled down in New York in 1995 and has a son named Shazer from Saumil. Later in life, she divorced Saumil and got married to Subak Majeed, a Pakistani businessman. For some time, Aneeta hosted TV shows in New York (ATNT).

Today, Aneeta Ayoob is living a private life with her family in America. Her budding career in Bollywood was nipped due to controversies, which always followed her. We, through our Qamyab series, remember this Pakistani beauty who made a name in Bollywood with just two films.