The Forgotten Gems of Bollywood

QAMYAB – THE FORGOTTEN GEMS OF BOLLYWOOD

After the super success of Bombay Talkies – The glory of Mumbai single screen cinemas, writer duo Sumeet Nadkarni and Alex Almeida are back with a new series 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. 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.

It is our belief that every artist contributes in his/her own way to the cinema’s success and that is why we remember a Ramlal or Sambha as much as Jai-Veeru from Sholay (1975). 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.

Hope our esteemed readers love and enjoy Qamyab as much as our previous endeavours.

We start with Antara Mali best known for her striking performances in Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon and Company.

The actress we are discussing today is currently just forty-seven years old and could’ve still been active in movies but chose to retire early and settle down in marital bliss. We are talking about Antara Mali who in her short and chequered career, managed to impress the audience and critics alike with her fine performances.

Born in Mumbai in to an illustrious family, Antara’s grandfather was the famous painter Shantanu Mali. Her father was the noted photographer Jagdish Mali who was most sought after in Bollywood in ’80s and ’90s. The petite and gorgeous Antara started her career with the relatively unknown Dhoondte Reh Jaaoge which released in 1998. The film went unnoticed and most don’t even recollect Antara in it.

Mali’s next release was the Telugu movie Prema Katha (1999) which was directed by Ram Gopal Varma (RGV) who soon became her mentor. Starting as a second lead in his Mast (1999), Antara Mali collaborated in many Hindi films with RGV like Road (2002), Company (2002) and Darna Mana Hai (2003). While Company was a box office super-hit, most of its credit went to Ajay Devgn and debutant Vivek Oberoi who played the real-life gangster duo in it. Antara couldn’t capitalize on its success at all.

2003 was a good year for Mali when her film Main Madhuri Dixit Banna Chahti Hoon, in which she played a bubbly small-town girl aspiring to be a filmstar like Madhuri, hit the theatres. Though not a huge commercial success, the film garnered her accolades from the critics. She also received a Filmfare award nomination that year for Company.

The next year, Antara had two releases – Gaayab and Naach – both RGV productions. While Gaayab disappeared from the theatres in a jiffy, Naach was highly anticipated Diwali 2004 release as it was RGV’s own directorial venture with Abhishek Bachchan as her co-actor. Unfortunately, the audience outrightly rejected the abstract and matured love story. Having said that, Antara once again got tremendous appreciation for her splendid performance. But somehow, box office success was eluding her and she was getting restricted to RGV movies only.

Antara pined her last hope on Mr Ya Miss (2005), a comedy involving body swap, which she herself directed as well as acted. The film was critically panned and proved to be a box office disaster. After this film, she decided to call it quits.

In 2009, Antara married Che Kurrien, a well-known magazine editor and settled down in domestic bliss. She gave birth to her daughter in 2012 in Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital away from the prying eye of the media. But then keeping media away is a tough task for celebrities specially film stars and Antara once again got unwanted news coverage in 2013 when her father Jagdish Mali was found begging on streets of Mumbai with tattered clothes and covered in dirt. Antara was immediately accused of not taking care of her father.

In a statement issued to a news tabloid. Antara Mali clarified that her father was a chronic diabetic with a liver problem and at times, if he forgot his insulin shot, he would get disoriented. Bollywood star Salman Khan offered help to Jagdish which she curtly refused stating she didn’t need anyone to take care of her father.

Antara continues to live a happy family life far away from the big bad Bollywood she was once a part of. Making an exceptional appearance for Amol Palekar in his directorial ‘..And Once Again’ (2010) where she shaved her head to play a monk, Antara Mali is a classic case of immense talent with no luck. Sad but true!!