August 21, 2025

Remember the shining star who danced to ‘Mud Mud Ke Na Dekh Mud Mud Ke’ in Raj Kapoor’s film Shree 420? That was Florence Ezekiel, better known as Nadira, Bollywood’s first famous vamp. She played Maya, a daring and bold woman who amazed audiences back in 1955. Nadira was famous for playing fearless, edgy ladies in Indian cinema. Born in Baghdad on December 5, 1932, Nadira came from a Baghdadi Jewish family. When she was just a baby, her family moved to Bombay to find better business options. She started acting very young, appearing as a child artist in the 1943 film Mauj, when she was only 10 or 11 years old. Her big break came thanks to Sardar Akhtar, wife of famous director Mehboob Khan. Nadira got a key role as a Rajput princess in Aan (1952), acting alongside Dilip Kumar. This role made her a serious actress and connected her with top film makers well before Mehboob Khan’s masterpiece Mother India. Then came the magical moment – Raj Kapoor cast her as Maya in Shree 420. Nadira took the role happily because working with Raj Kapoor was a dream come true. But her dazzling role as the seductive Maya boxed her into the part of the vamp forever. She later said in interviews that this was both her glory and her curse. She confessed, “I took up Shree 420 for a lark but it became my Waterloo. I took up the role as a challenge, to prove my versatility, and it ruined my career.” Nadira’s film count reached nearly 73, and she lived a luxurious life too! Did you know she was the first Indian actor to buy a Rolls Royce? She loved fancy cars and good liquor – truly a lifestyle fit for a queen of glam. Her last screen appearance was in Josh (2000), starring Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai. After retiring, Nadira lived quietly. She never married and stayed in her Mumbai flat, supported by her helpers after her family moved abroad. Sadly, ill health troubled her final years, battling diseases like tubercular meningitis and liver disorder. Nadira passed away in 2006 at the age of 73. Today, Nadira is remembered as the unforgettable vamp who changed how Indian cinema saw bold women. Her legacy sparkles as brightly as her famous smile on screen!

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Tags: Nadira, Bollywood vamp, Shree 420, Raj kapoor, Indian cinema, Classic films,