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Yesteryear Bollywood star Nanda lit the cinema screens in the 1960s and early 70s. The actress excelled equally in playing a coy Indian beauty as well as roles with modern sensibilities, paired up with many stars onscreen, including Ashok Kumar, Kishore Kumar, Dev Anand, Rajesh Khanna and Shashi Kapoor. Some of the most memorable movies that Nanda was a part of included ‘Jab Phool Khile’, ‘Gumnaam’ and ‘Ittefaq’.
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Born on January 8, 1939, as Nandini Karnataki in a Maharashtrian show-business family, she began her career as a child actress.
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Her father, Vinayak Damodar Karnataki (Master Vinayak), was a successful Marathi actor-producer-director. He was related to many personalities in the Indian film industry. Sadly Master Vinayak passed away when Nanda was eight years old.
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She continued working as a child star to support her siblings. Her uncle V Shantaram cast her in ‘Toofaan aur Deeya’ (1956) when she was seventeen. She continued to woo her audiences in the movie ‘Chhoti Behen’ (1959).
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Nanda was cast as Dev Anand’s sister under the Navketan banner ‘Kaala Bazar’ (1960). At this time, Nanda struck a life-long friendship with Waheeda Rehman, the heroine of this movie. After seeing Nanda’s acting skills, Dev Anand was very impressed and promised her that he would give her the main lead role in ‘Hum Dono’ (1961). Anand also recommended her for a lead role in ‘Teen Devian’ (1965), which was directed by his younger brother Vijay Anand. She was cast alongside Kalpana and Simi Garewal as the other two ‘devis’ (Goddess). These two movies played a significant role in turning Nanda into a heroine who was equally comfortable playing the traditional Indian woman and the westernised damsel.
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However, with ‘Jab Jab Phool Khile’ (1965) alongside Shashi Kapoor, Nanda established herself as an extremely stylish and versatile star who could gracefully carry Indian and western dresses and portray emotions effectively. They worked together in eight movies. Shashi Kapoor always said that Nanda was his favourite heroine.
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Through all her performances, the audience could see and feel her inherent shyness. It may not have been easy for an introvert like Nanda to have played some bold roles. She always overcame her shyness when she was in front of the camera. Nanda followed etiquettes like no other in the industry. She never ordered food at the producer’s expense. If she brought guests, she would pay for them. Nanda carried her lunch and paid her own laundry bills. If a movie was shelved, she would return the amount.
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Her movies with superstar Rajesh Khanna—’Ittefaaq’ (1969), ‘The Train’ (1970) and ‘Joroo ka Ghulam’ (1972) were quite successful. Her short role in Manoj Kumar’s ‘Shor’ (1972) is remembered to date.
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When Raj Kapoor requested her to play the role of Padmini Kolhapure’s mother in ‘Prem Rog’ (1982), Nanda could not refuse. She also appeared in the role of a mother in ‘Ahista Ahista’ (1981) and ‘Mazdoor’ (1983).
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She reduced her work in movies. Like her close friend Sadhana, Nanda too became reclusive and was not seen at social gatherings for years. There was a time when Nanda planned a double wedding with Waheeda and insisted it would be a love marriage.
