Did you know that Achala Sachdev, who had played the role of Dev Anand's sister, got married, separated and also faced depression?
Hindi cinema has given us an array of stars who have been known for their acting craft and style. One of the evergreen stars who had mesmerised everyone with his on-screen aura was Dev Anand. However, his reel screen sister, Achala Sachdev's work, continued speaking and was loved among her fans. However, do you know she had a life filled with turmoil? She had done more than 250 movies and was known for playing the role of a mom and grandmother in many movies.
Achala's personal life was filled with tragedy. She was initially married to filmmaker, Gyan Sachdeva and had a son called, Jothin Sachdev. He had moved to the USA, and after a couple of years in her marriage, Achala and Gyan, who was a director, separated. After being separated from Gyan, Achala got married to Clifford Douglas Peters, a British National who had shifted to Pune. Sadly, in 2002, Clifford passed away, and Achala, according to an India.com report, had become depressed.
Achala is also best known for essaying the role of 'Simran', who was Kajol's grandmother in the movie, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge. She was born on May 3, 1920, in Pakistan's Peshawar, and on April 30, 2012, she passed away at a Pune hospital as she battled loneliness. Reportedly, her son, Jyotin, who stayed in the US, did not look after her. Achala began her career as a child actress in the Bollywood film industry. It was in 1950 when she was selected to play the role of Dev Anand's sister in the movie, Dilruba.
Her performances in movies like Sangam, Footpath, Dil Ek Mandir, Miss Mary gave her immense fame. She was best known for her mother and grandmother figure roles in movies like Arzoo (1965), Waqt (1965), Mere Naam Joker (1970), Hare Rama Hare Krishna (1971), Chandni (1989), Dilwale Dhulhania Le Jayenge (1995), Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (2001), Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003) and many other films.
It was in the movie Waqt that Achala had played the role of Balraj Sahni's wife. Their song, Ae Meri Zohra Jabeen was filmed on Balraj and Achala became such a rage that it is still on people's minds. Although, after Achala's second husband, Clifford, passed away 12 years ago, she stayed in a two-bedroom apartment in the Konark Estate Apartments, which was near Poona Club back in Pune. According to a DNA report, Achala's husband, Clifford Douglas Peters, died in 2002. After this, for 12 years, she lived alone in a two-bedroom flat in Konark Estate Apartments near Poona Club in Pune.
During this time, only an attendant used to stay there at night to take care of her. It was a sad state as Achala was all left alone. She had an illustrious career as she had also worked as an RJ at the All India Radio (AIR) Lahore. Post the partition, Achala's family had shifted to Delhi from Peshawar, and then at AIR Delhi, she resumed her work. Achala also had interviewed many stars and has made many cameo appearances in movies.
What do you think of Dev Anand's reel screen sister, Achala Sachdev's personal life?
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