--- name: "Nargis" canonical: "https://film.one/person/nargis" fi1m_id: "nargis" imdb_id: "nm0004291" tmdb_id: 14078 wikidata_id: "Q159169" roles: ["Actor"] born: "1 June 1929" died: "3 May 1981" reviewed_on_fi1m: 1 average_as: "actor" average_over: 1 updated: "2026-09-25T08:15:29.711016+00:00" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Nargis ## Identity Nargis - **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/nargis - **Type:** Person - **Fi1m ID:** nargis - **IMDb ID:** nm0004291 - **TMDB ID:** 14078 - **Wikidata ID:** Q159169 - **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nargis, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q159169, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004291/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/14078 Actor. Born 1 June 1929 in Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India [now India]. Died 3 May 1981. ## Details - **Work:** Actor - **Born:** 1 June 1929, Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India [now India] - **Died:** 3 May 1981 - **Also known as:** Nargis Dutt, Nirmala Dutt, Fatima Rashid, Fatima A. Rashid, Fatima Abdul Rashid, Fatima Mohanchand Uttamchand, Baby Rani, Наргис Датт, Фатима Рашид, Фатима А. Рашид, Фатима Абдул Рашид, Тежешвари Утамчанд Моханчанд - **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nargis, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q159169, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0004291/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/14078 ## Fi1m on Nargis > Nargis makes determination moving without asking us simply to admire it. Her performance in *Mother India* earns our patience with the film’s excesses, but her work as a modern romantic lead deserves attention too. In *Mother India* (1957), Nargis’s Radha endures hardship without seeming content to be pitied. Her acting is broad, but the obstinacy stops the character becoming merely an example of courage. We were moved by the way she keeps that stubbornness visible beneath Mehboob Khan’s insistence on suffering. It is a forceful performance in a good film that repeats itself too often, and the main reason to give it the evening it asks for. Khan had given her her first leading role in *Taqdeer* (1943), then helped establish her prominence with *Andaz* (1949). Her repeated pairing with Raj Kapoor continued through *Awaara* (1951) and *Shree 420* (1955). Across romance, comedy and social drama, she was frequently cast as independent, modern or outspoken women. That history matters when approaching Radha: the enduring mother was not the only kind of woman she could make convincing. In *Mother India*, she makes the ageing from young bride to mother convincing, without smoothing away Radha’s obstinacy. Khan is less willing to leave an emotion alone once we have understood it. Naushad’s music gives the feelings room to expand through song, and these passages belong to the way the film tells its story. But their persistence adds emphasis when Nargis has already done enough, and the repetition makes those 175 minutes feel long. Some quiet would let us attend to her performance without being told again how much it matters. Her later work included the more traditional, sacrificial figures of *Adalat* (1958) and *Lajwanti* (1958). *Raat Aur Din* (1967), her final film, gave her contrasting personalities to play. Start with *Mother India* if a large musical melodrama suits the evening, and allow it patience, but not automatic reverence. For another side of her work, follow it with *Awaara*. ## Biography Nargis, born Fatima Rashid, was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi cinema. She made her screen debut as a child and appeared in leading roles from the 1940s onwards, often opposite Raj Kapoor in films such as *Awaara* (1951). She is best known for her performance as Radha in *Mother India* (1957), for which she received the Filmfare Award for Best Actress. Nargis received the Padma Shri in 1958. She married actor Sunil Dutt that year and later served as a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha. Her final film was *Raat Aur Din* (1967), for which she won the National Film Award for Best Actress. She died in 1981. *Sources: en.wikipedia.org, imdb.com.* ## On Fi1m (1) - *Mother India* (1957), Fi1m 76, as Radha — [page](https://film.one/film/mother-india.md) ## Complete filmography (49) Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page. - *Nargis* (1991), Actor - *Where the River Padma Flows* (1971), Actor - *So Many Dreams on the Streets* (1968), Actor - *Raat Aur Din* (1967), as Varuna - *Yaadein* (1964), Story - *Talash* (1963), Actor - *Lajwanti* (1958), as Kavita - *Adalat* (1958), Actor - *Pardesi* (1957), as Champa - *Mother India* (1957), as Radha — Fi1m 76, [page](https://film.one/film/mother-india.md) - *Miss India* (1957), as Rama - *Jagte Raho* (1956), as Temple Singer - *Chori Chori* (1956), as Kammo - *Shree 420* (1955), as Vidya - *Angarey* (1954), as Shimsi - *Paapi* (1953), as Lachhi - *Dhoon* (1953), as Kamini - *Aah* (1953), as Neelu Rai - *Anhonee* (1952), as Roop H. Singh / Mohinibai - *Ashiana* (1952), as Gaura - *Amber* (1952), as Rajkumari Amber - *Bewafa* (1952), as Roopa - *Awaara* (1951), as Rita - *Pyar Ki Baten* (1951), as Princess Nadira - *Saagar* (1951), Actor - *Hulchul* (1951), as Asha - *Deedar* (1951), as Mala - *Babul* (1950), as Bela - *Pyar* (1950), as Rani - *Adhi Raat* (1950), Actor - *Jan Pahchan* (1950), as Asha - *Jogan* (1950), as Surabhi / Meera - *Birha Ki Raat* (1950), Actor - *Andaz* (1949), as Nina - *Barsaat* (1949), as Reshma - *Lahore* (1949), as Lilo - *Aag* (1948), as Nimmi - *Anokha Pyar* (1948), as Geeta - *Mela* (1948), as Manjo - *Romeo and Juliet* (1947), Actor - *Humayun* (1945), as Hamida Bano - *Ramayani* (1945), Actor - *Bisvi Sadi* (1945), Actor - *Anban* (1944), as Malati - *Taqdeer* (1943), as Salma - *Pardanasheen* (1942), Actor - *Pearl Necklace* (1937), Actor - *Madam Fashion* (1936), Actor - *Talashe Haq* (1935), as Razia ## Gallery - ![Detailed testimonial of famous Actor Nargis and Sunil Dutt of Morgan House, Kalimpong (2017)](https://film.one/media/person/3875716/gallery-17634eddce10.jpg) Detailed testimonial of famous Actor Nargis and Sunil Dutt of Morgan House, Kalimpong (2017) — Subhrajyoti07, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/95/Morgan_House_Kalimpong_Testimonial_of_famous_Actor_Nargis_and_Sunil_Dutt.jpg/1280px-Morgan_House_Kalimpong_Testimonial_of_famous_Actor_Nargis_and_Sunil_Dutt.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail) - ![Nargis](https://film.one/media/person/3875716/gallery-db6fc6738173.jpg) Nargis — Image via TMDB - ![Nargis](https://film.one/media/person/3875716/gallery-83c5e0184ca4.jpg) Nargis — Image via TMDB ## Awards ### Other awards — 3 won - National Film Award for Best Actress 1968: National Film Award for Best Actress (won), for *Raat Aur Din* - Filmfare Award for Best Actress 1958: Filmfare Award for Best Actress (won), for *Mother India* - Padma Shri in arts 1958: Padma Shri in arts (won) *From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.* --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/nargis