Re: Indian screen siren Parveen Babi found dead
Witchy Way
http://www.bollywood501.com/classic_f/parveen_babi/
CliffB
witc...@webtv.net wrote on 1/23/05 2:50 AM:
> wow! she was beautiful! she was 55
>
> http://www.bollywood501.com/classic_f/parveen_babi/
>
>
>
Parveen Babi found dead in her flat
By: Vinod Kumar Menon and Shailesh Bhatia
January 23, 2005
http://ww1.mid-day.com/news/city/2005/january/102106.htm
Parveen Babi was nearly 50 and had been plagued by a mental illness during
the last years of her life. Pics: Jitendra Arya
Unclaimed Body No 16. From the reigning sex symbol of Bollywood in the
1970s, all that identifies Parveen Wali Mohammad Khan Babi alias Parveen
Babi (55) as she lies in the Cooper hospital morgue, is the tag on her toe
left by the police ‹ Token No 62.
Given her status as a yesteryear film star, the only luxury afforded to her
in the morgue is a trolley on which her body lies.
The other 15 unclaimed bodies are of persons involved in road and train
accidents and have been packed in broken wooden boxes in the next room.
łWe will wait for seven days for someone to claim her body,˛ said Amitav
Gupta, deputy commissioner of police. Under the law, the husband and the
children have the first claim on a womanąs dead body, followed by parents.
If they are dead, siblings can also claim the body. If no surviving
relatives are willing to claim the body, friends can apply to the police and
claim the body to conduct the funeral rites. In case no genuine claims are
received in seven days, the police will bury the body.
As of Saturday night, there were two claimants to the body. Late comedian
Mehmoodąs younger brother Anwar Mehmood. łShe was like a sister,˛ Anwar told
the police.
Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who had a relationship with the actress, also said,
łI have just sent a message to Javed Ahmed that in case no one claims her
body and it doesnąt legally violate any clauses, I will give her a dignified
funeral. I only met her mother when she was alive and I did hear of a
distant cousin, but I donąt know of any other relationship that she had.˛
A nephew of Babiąs from Junagadh has also approached the police.
Untouched newspapers and milk bags
The body of the actress was discovered by the police in Palm Beach Rivera
building flat, Juhu on Saturday afternoon, after the neighbours complained
of foul stench emitting from the seventh floor flat.
ACP Gahininath Nimgaonkar of Zone Nine said that the police had to use
duplicate keys to enter the flat.
łWe discovered the body of Parveen Babi, who was dressed casually in
off-white long shorts and a top, lying face up in the bedroom. There were no
signs of any struggle or foul play. She had a bandage on her left foot, that
she had put on, to treat her gangrene which had resulted from a long ailment
of diabetes."
łThere were untouched newspapers, eggs and milk lying outside the door for
the last two days. Initially we did not take the issue very seriously as
Babi was a recluse and would often be locked inside the flat for days
without interacting with anyone. Our concern grew when no one responded to
the doorbell,˛ said M S Mahotra, a fourth-floor resident.
Malhotra added that in the last 20 years, she must have seen the actress not
more than 15 times.
łWe all knew that Babi was suffering from psychological problems. Things
took a turn for the worst when she lost her mother, who was her sole
companion, a couple of years ago. In the last couple of months, she could
barely walk, even with the aid of crutches,˛ she said.
Babi had been living alone ever since and had refused to appoint even a
maidservant to do the household chores, evident from the mess in her flat.
Calls to the police
Even the staff of Juhu police station, often harassed by calls from Babi,
would not have anticipated her lonely demise. The actress was notorious for
calling the police at all hours, complaining that her former co-stars were
tormenting her.
łOnce she had also complained that the CIA was out to get her,˛ said senior
inspector Shyam Chavan of Juhu police station. The calls had substantially
reduced in recent times.
Forensic
łPrima facie, the death seems to have occurred 24 hours before her body was
discovered as it shows initial signs of decomposition,˛ said forensic
doctors Dr Shivaji Kachre and Dr B S Shinde who conducted the autopsy. łShe
has a diabetic gangrene on her left foot,˛ the doctor added.
The autopsy also found alcohol content in her stomach and the viscera has
been sent for a chemical analysis report to rule out foul play, the doctor
said. The cause of the death has now been kept reserved.
łHer right leg was swollen and her face puffed. This indicates that her
kidney, liver and other vital organs had stopped functioning,˛ said Dr
Kachre, łHer heart was abnormal.˛
Who will inherit Babiąs crores?
Police have not yet found any will as to who would inherit the beach-facing
flat, worth Rs 1.5 crore. The police are also drawing up a list of her
investments and other properties. Babi also owes her building society Rs 3
lakhs, besides monthly charges for the last couple of months.
Kabir Bedi, actor
Parveen and I shared a major relationship after my marriage ended. We lived
together for about three years.
We had a deeply emotional relationship and any news like this affects you.
We were young at the time and at the end of the day, when I went abroad, she
came with me to Italy and London but then chose to come back and join the
Indian film industry again.
She was a very beautiful, talented and spirited girl. And in the few years
in spent the industry she certainly made her mark.
I will remember her for the good times we had together, for her sense of
humour and ready laugh.
We were part of a whole group of friends who lived in Juhu and weąd hang out
together and had met several times before we actually got together.
The last time I saw her was when we had the memorial service after Protima
died. Parveen had come to pay her respects. I saw her then and she said,
ŚLetąs stay in touchą but I think it was more of a courtesy thing.
Itąs very sad, she had problems but in the end sheąs left an indelible mark
in the industry.
B R Ishara, director
I met Parveen when she came to see a shooting of mine in Ahmedabad. I
thought she had a great face and asked the photographer to take pictures of
her. When I saw the pictures, I signed her for Charitra and my guess proved
right she became a star.
She was a beautiful human being and we used to meet and talk on the
telephone even though we werenąt very close, but I havenąt spoken to her in
the last three-four years. I had actually narrated the script of a mother
and daughter when I first met her.
I wanted her to play the part of the mother and she agreed. It showed that
she had self-confidence at 19-20 years, even though I didnąt end up making
that film. With me, she was a newcomer so she was always one of the unit.
She was of above average intelligence. I made her sign on stamp paper
because I knew she was a modern girl and I didnąt want her to back out of
the film.
There was a rumour that this sickness was in her genes her father was said
to have suffered from a persecution complex. I didnąt know much of her
family. After Mahesh Bhatt took her to Bangalore to meet U G Krishnamurthy,
she came back much better. Itąs sad news. What went wrong, I have no idea.
Jagdish Mali, photographer
Iąve taken so many pictures of her for Cine Blitz over 3-4 years, when she
did Namak Halaal and Do Aur Do Paanch. She was always very co-operative.
Bharat Godambe used to do her make-up and we used to shoot her at her
Kalumal Estate house in Juhu.
She was a nice person, but I never met her after she went away. She was so
glamourous, so stylish at that time that people were shaken up. She always
seemed more like a model than actress.
Bindiya Goswami, actress
I knew Parveen way before she joined the film industry. She and my sister
Pearl were in boarding school together in Ahmedabad. Sheąs seen me as a baby
and whenever we were shooting together she used to baby me quite a bit.
It was like having my didi on the sets. We had a lot of happy moments
together, especially during the making of Shaan where we were really a big
group.
One of my favourite memories of her was sharing make up tips. We had the
same make up man and she would always come and ask me, łSo, what are you
trying out these days? Have you bought anything new? I liked experimenting
with eye make up a lot, and sheąd always ask me about it.˛
Then I got married, had kids and though I lived down the road from her, the
last time I met her was years ago at a party at Madh.
Jayesh Sheth, photographer
I shot her only once, for an interior magazine because she had started
designing for hotels. I went to shoot at the flat that she had designed
herself. She was very humble and so beautiful, unlike what I had heard.
There was a workshop in her house and she was so polite to the carpenters.
We spoke about how she had moved from the industry and lost interest in
films. She seemed very philosophical and spiritual; she was talking a lot of
sense. She even gave me tips for decorating my studio. Even though she
looked bloated, her style and grace were exactly the same. She was very
Angrez.
ŚWe were a disastrous cocktailą
Mahesh Bhatt on his explosive relationship with Parveen Babi and her
audacious, fun-loving side
łI feel that Parveen died twice. Once before in 1979, when her personality
collapsed like a house of cards. The illness tore us apart. She was trying
her best, but once the ailment devastates you, every attack erodes you and
debilitates your body.
We live in ignorant times where mental ailments are still linked to stress
and strain. I was just in Hyderabad giving an address to new IPS officers
and I commented that mental ailments are a part of a biochemical disorder
and I was using Parveen as a reference. Her death came on a sms, just as my
plane was coming to a halt.
łWe met her when she was with Kabir Bedi, whoąs a very dear friend. Their
relationship suddenly ended while he was in Italy and she came back and was
all alone. Thatąs when we became close."
I lived with her for two-and-a-half years and she was an intense, dear,
intimate person who collapsed in front of my eyes and so-called literate
people attributed it to external factors. She always lived on her own terms
and was a very outgoing, fun-loving, audacious girl. She was the first Time
magazine cover girl, but she never deluded herself. She was generous and
kind and she brings a smile to my face.
I was known through my association with her, as Parveen Babiąs boyfriend
till Arth, which had echoes of my life with her. It was an ethical decision
(to put her in the film).
I told as much of my life as of hers and she never said anything to me about
it. My identity was through my association with her because Arth is still
regarded as the glowing point of my career.
łI heard through people that she was disturbed by Arth, but we never met
after that. I ran into her in 1991 at a bookshop in Holiday Inn. She was
picking up the Architectural Digest, she said, łExcuse me,˛ and I stepped
back. I froze like you do when you meet someone from the past. She looked at
me and that was it.
łWe were a disastrous cocktail and had to be weaned away from each other
because it was dangerous. When Shaan was being shot with this mega star
cast, she had a nervous breakdown and was not responding to drugs. The
producers were getting restless and they blamed it all on me."
They wanted to allow the electronic shock treatment so that she could be
functional to suit (Ramesh) Sippyąs next opus. I rescued her from this world
and we ran away to Bangalore and met U G Krishnamurthy. We lived there, then
escaped to Ooty and Kodaikanal and it was there that she limped to normalcy
under U G Krishnamurthyąs umbrella.
She came back and completed the movie, but she was not the same in those
last six months and you can see that in the song ŚJeete hai shaan seą. She
was stitched up together to meet the ends of the industry and they are the
ones who now pretend concern.
łShe was intelligent enough to invest, from what I know of her. She was
worldly-wise. I always knew that she would have solitary fadeout, that she
would withdraw into her cocoon. But maybe, weąre superimposing tragedy on
her. Maybe the world is mad and her life is not that tragic.˛
ŚMental illness isolates youą
Whether a celebrity or an ordinary person, your social network when you are
alive, defines how many people would be there when youąre dead, say
psychiatrists.
But globalisation has ensured that the quantum and quality of networks
between people are poor. Neighbours donąt talk to each other no one knows
whoąs coming and going. No one bothers if milk or kachra are left unattended
outside.
Says a doctor, łParveen Babi had paranoid schizophrenia. When youąre
mentally ill itąs worse, especially if itąs a mental illness that isolates
you. People generally find it is easy to empathise with someone who is
depressed but not with someone who is paranoid.
łEven if someone had taken her to the hospital, there was no support network
to monitor her treatment at home, on a permanent basis. Other people are
scared to reach out. Law has become such that if a person is mentally ill,
you canąt reach out to them. If you took the patient to the hospital against
his or her wishes, you would be violating their human rights. Nobody takes a
risk with a mentally ill, single woman. In future, there will be many such
cases. It is the nature of globalisation there is an overall lack of
sympathy.˛
Urban isolation is a by-product of the times, whereby parents are left alone
while children move away to other cities or countries to earn a living.
Children who have moved away also live in isolation. The number of support
groups, homes for the mentally ill or rehab centres is simply not enough.
"Mumbai has two just support groups for patients of schizophrenia. And while
these are doing a commendable job, the odds are against them, for about one
per cent of Mumbaiwallahs suffers from some form of schizophrenia.˛
Health professionals say that between 60 to 80 per cent patients of
schizophrenia can lead a normal life. The illness is more common in the
young simply because it starts at a younger age but is not gender-specific.
And while the predisposition to schizophrenia is genetic, it is something
that happens in the personąs life that pushes him or her over the edge.
Claimants
* Anwar Mehmood, brother of late comedian Mehmood. łShe was like my sister.˛
* Mahesh Bhatt, who had a relationship with the actress. łI will give her a
dignified funeral.˛
* Two women who demanded to see the body. Police refused.
* A nephew of Babiąs who has come in from Junagadh.
Voices
She was the sexy actress of the 70s. There was a big craze about her when I
was young. She formed a good pair with Feroze Khan.
‹ Shirish Gavali
I loved her in Namak Halal. Stunningly beautiful, Parveen Babi was the
definitive babe of the seventies. Classics like Shaan and Deewar and Amar
Akbar Anthony with Amitabh are still fresh in my mind.
‹ Amar Soni
She was a very good actress, but it is unfortunate the way she died. Her
persona resembled Zeenat Aman in more than one way and they both were the
sex symbols of their times.
‹ Apurva Tank
I liked her movies; she was very charming, quite attractive and had very
beautiful eyes. Deewar, Amar Akbar Anthony were my favourites movies and she
actually lent good support to Amitabh Bachchan. She also resembled Zeenat
Aman, both were westernised, but Babi could also carry off an Indian look,
Zeenat Aman still had that Anglo look.
‹ Yasmin Eluvia
I still remember that song from Shaan ŚJeete hai shaan seą where she looked
really good. But we basically remember her because of Amitabh Bachchan. She
resembled Zeenat Aman a lot.
‹ Meera Parmar
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Lulu
> http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=658684
>
> Indian screen siren found dead
> Sat Jan 22, 2005 01:49 PM ET
>
> BOMBAY (Reuters) - Indian actress Parveen Babi, who played the siren
> in dozens of Bollywood films, has been found dead at her home, a
> police officer says.
>
Just saw her in Amar Akbar Anthony a month or two ago. She was an
amazingly beautiful woman.
Apparently she had major problems later in life, including substance
abuse and schizophrenia. A real shame.
-Lulu