Kamini Kaushal (1927-2025): Golden Girl

From the courageous Rupa of Chetan Anand's prescient Neecha Nagar (1946) to the wise grandmother of Kabir Singh (2019), Kamini Kaushal had a long and fruitful career in Hindi cinema. The delicate and soft spoken actor had many firsts to her credit: she was one of the first educated women to be in films, she was married while also being a successful heroine, and she was one of the first women in the industry to realise the importance of costume design, encouraging a young Bhanu Athaiya to work on her looks.

The child of a famous botanist, famously married to her late sister's husband, she was also beloved by Dilip Kumar, her co-star in Shaheed, a romance that was as well known as it was tragically unfulfilled. Kaushal was the lead in many films between 1946 and 1963, before voluntarily deciding to play character roles. 

 Born in Lahore, she did her B.A. (honours) in English literature from Government College in Lahore and spent many carefree years riding, swimming, skating and doing radio plays. Marriage to her brother-in-law BS Sood, chief engineer in Bombay Port Trust, in 1948 changed that, but life in newly independent Bombay was exciting, especially as she decided to continue working in the movies. 

 It was an exciting time for young women in Indian cinema, with actors like Kaushal, Nargis, Madhubala and Geeta Bali moving from light romances to serious dramas, all the while setting standards for women in hair, make-up, dressing and most of all poise. It was the golden age of cinema and the gilded age for women, who were learning to be free, just like their nation.