Mumtaz Reveals She Was Considered B-Grade Until She Worked With Dilip Kumar, 'Closed My Eyes...'

Mumtaz recalled the time when she was tagged as a B-grade actress during her career and revealed how she came out of it.

By Srijony Das Last Updated: Jan 18, 2024 | 21:16:52 IST

Mumtaz was one of the most talented actresses back in 80s Bollywood. The diva created a legacy of her own with her gorgeous beauty and incomparable acting mettle. Well, not just her terrific performance, the actress was also renowned for her graceful dance moves and exquisite sense of fashion, which created a rage in itself. And now, Mumtaz revealed some special anecdotes from her glorious career.

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Mumtaz recalls being labelled as a B-grade actor until she worked with Dilip Kumar

In an interaction with Dawn News, Mumtaz opened up about that phase of her career when she was equivocally labelled as a B-grade actress in Hindi cinema. She revealed that she got such a tag since she did a lot of small roles. However, Mumtaz remarked that she simply closed her eyes and worked on, trusting in God to do the needful. Elaborating how she was freed of the tag post working with Dilip Kumar, Mumtaz said:

“I was given the label of a B-grade actor because I did a lot of small roles. I also did comedy with Mehboob sahab. I just closed my eyes and did work. I thought the rest is in god’s hands. My start in the film industry was wrong. I won’t blame the heroes for not working with me because everybody wants to climb the ladder of success. But Mehboob sahab showed one of my scenes to Dilip Kumar sahab and asked him if he would work with me in Ram Aur Shyam. He told him that the girl was nice and he agreed. Dilip sahab was a very down-to-earth person.”

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Mumtaz reveals she never discriminated between actors with whom she worked

In the same interview, Mumtaz mentioned that she did not discriminate to work with any actor or refused to work with her colleagues. Talking about the reason for such a stance, the veteran actress cited her own history, where she would often face such discrimination herself. In her words:

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“I used to think of my time when nobody wanted to work with me and nobody accepted me. So when god made me something then it’s not right for me to do the same thing that I faced to other people. So, I used to think that if I have the ability, I will work with everyone and if the actor is not good, they won’t get work in the future.”

Mumtaz shared how Raj Kapoor dropped her from a film due to her affair with Shammi Kapoor

In one of her previous interviews on an Urdu channel, Mumtaz revealed how eminent filmmaker, Raj Kapoor dropped her from the film, Mera Naam Joker back in the days. The actress added that the filmmaker chose to do so, since she was at that time, romantically inclined with her brother, Shammi Kapoor. Moreover, since she was going to become a part of the Kapoor clan, Raj Kapoor didn’t want Mumtaz to wear short clothes.

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Mumtaz talked about the secret behind her beauty

Previously, in an interview with ETimes, Mumtaz opened up about the secret behind her evergreen beauty. The gorgeous diva recalled the evergreen superstar, Dev Anand’s suggestion to her and mentioned him urging her to take care about her skin and hair. Elaborating more, she said:

“I remember Dev Anand once told me that I should take care of my hair and body. He said that I should always try and look young. He said, 'Mumzi, age is a bloody number'. He said if I look good I can have a boyfriend at 90 too. He asked me if I wanted proof. He opened a door and showed me that three girls were waiting for him in the other room to have a date with him. Mind you, he was 80 then.”

What do you think about Mumtaz’s revelations?

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