Aruna Irani

Aruna Irani kicked off her film career super early—like, nine years old kind of early—showing up in Gunga Jumna back in ’61. Didn’t take her long to rack up a bunch of smaller roles throughout the '60s, popping up in stuff like Jahanara, Farz, Upkar, and Aaya Sawan Jhoomke. She got paired with Mehmood Ali quite a bit, which honestly just meant double the laughs in flicks like Aulad, Humjoli, Manmandir, and Naya Zamana. Then came 1971, and boom—Caravan happened, which was a huge deal for her. She just kept rolling from there, starring in Mehmood’s Bombay to Goa, Garam Masala, and Do Phool. Some of her most memorable roles, though? All those Rajesh Khanna films—Dhanwan, Redrose, Amrit, Kudrat, Masterji, Aan Milo Sajna—the list goes on. The ‘70s and early ‘80s had her all over the place, showing up in Bobby, Prem Nagar, Sargam, Love Story, Rocky… you name it, she was probably in it. Her big acting chops finally got the notice they deserved when she snagged her first Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for Pet Pyaar Aur Paap in ’84. By the late ‘80s, she switched gears, playing all those classic mother roles—Beta in ’92 landed her another Filmfare. She even did the same part in the Kannada remake. Marathi films? Yup—Changu Mangu, Lapwa Chapvi, Ek Gadi Baki Anadi, Bol Baby Bol. Later, she dove into TV, acting and even getting behind the camera on shows like Mehndi Tere Naam Ki and Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand. In 2012, she finally got the Lifetime Achievement Award at Filmfare—well overdue, if you ask me.