Sadhana Shivdasani

Sadhana Shivdasani, known mononymously as Sadhana, was an Indian film actress who was born on 2 September 1941 in Karachi, Sind, British India.

She was born into a Sindhi Hindu family and was an only child. Sadhana was named after her father's favorite actress-dancer, Sadhana Bose. Her father was the elder brother of actor Hari Shivdasani, who was the father of actress Babita.

She made her first cinematic appearance in a cameo role in the song "Mud Mud Ke Na Dekh" in Raj Kapoor's Shree 420 (1955).

Full Name	Sadhana Shivdasani
Other Name(s)	"The Mystery Girl", "First Female Fashion Icon"
Occupation	Actress
Date of Birth	02-September-1941 (74 years)
Birth Location	Karachi, Sind, British India (present-day Sindh, Pakistan)
Gender	Female
Nationality	Indian
Religion	Hindu
Zodiac Sign	Virgo
Death Time	25-December-2015
Death Location	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Height	168 cm
Weight	60 kg
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Black
College	Jai Hind College, Mumbai
Qualification	Graduate
Hobbies	Dancing, Cooking

After this unnoted appearance, she became the protégé of director Sashadhar Mukherjee, who enrolled her in his acting school and later gave her her first leading role in the romantic comedy Love in Simla (1960), which marked her Hindi film debut as a main actress. She also appeared in the Sindhi film Abana (1958) and the film Sahara (1958).

She was active in Hindi films primarily between 1960 and 1981 and is regarded as one of the greatest actresses in Indian cinema. She was popularly known as "The Mystery Girl" for her stint as the mysterious woman in the suspense thriller trilogy films directed by Raj Khosla during the mid-1960s, including Woh Kaun Thi? (1964) and Mera Saaya (1966).

She was noted for her exquisite beauty, understated acting, and trend-setting fashion statements. Her iconic hairstyle, known as the "Sadhana cut," became a fashion trend. Sadhana was ranked among the highest-paid actresses in the country from the mid-1960s to the early 1970s.

Some of her notable films include Hum Dono (1961), Asli-Naqli (1962), Mere Mehboob (1963), Rajkumar (1964), Waqt (1965), Arzoo (1965), Budtameez (1966), Anita (1967), Sachaai (1969), Intaquam (1969), Ek Phool Do Mali (1969), Ishq Par Zor Nahin (1970), and Aap Aye Bahaar Ayee (1971). She received the Lifetime Achievement Award at IIFA in 2002.

Sadhana Shivdasani married Rajkumar Nayyar (R.K. Nayyar), the director of Love in Shimla, on 7 March 1966. Their marriage lasted for 30 years and ended when R.K. Nayyar died in 1995. Sadhana never married after his death and lived alone for most of her life.

The couple had no children. In 2013, she stated that she did not keep in touch with her first cousin Babita but did keep in touch with actresses such as Asha Parekh, Waheeda Rehman, Nanda, and Helen Richardson. She also produced the film Pati Parmeshwar (1989) with Dimple Kapadia in the lead role.

Sadhana Shivdasani died on 25 December 2015 at Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai after being hospitalized with a high fever. She was 74 years old at the time of her death.

Photo Gallery