The name Rakhee Gulzar is one that every Bollywood fan knows. She was one of the biggest actresses of the 1970s and early 1980s, and her work in both Hindi and Bengali films left a mark that is hard to match. She is the wife of legendary poet, lyricist and filmmaker Gulzar, and the mother of director Meghna Gulzar. With a career that ran for over three decades and nearly a hundred films, Rakhee proved that talent and hard work can take you a long way, even when you come from a simple background with no film connections. Let us dig deeper to understand her journey, her family and her life.
Rakhee Gulzar Wiki/Biography
Rakhee Gulzar, whose birth name is Rakhee Majumdar, is an Indian film actress best known for her work in Hindi and Bengali movies. She was born on 15th August 1947 in Ranaghat, West Bengal, and she is around 78 years old today. She belongs to a simple Bengali family that had nothing to do with the film industry. She made her film debut in 1967 with a Bengali film called Badhu Bharan, and from there she slowly built her way up to become one of the most respected actresses in Indian cinema. She has won two National Film Awards, three Filmfare Awards, and in 2003 she was honoured with the Padma Shri by the Government of India.
| Name | Rakhee Majumdar (Rakhee Gulzar) |
| Birth Date | 15 August 1947 |
| Place of Birth | Ranaghat, West Bengal, India |
| Age | 78 Years Old |
| Education | Local girls’ school in Ranaghat |
| Profession | Actress |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Height | 5 Feet 2 inches |
| Eye Color | Hazel |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Gender | Female |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Net worth | Reportedly around ₹50-100 Crore (exact figure not officially confirmed) |
| Social Media | Not active on social media |
Rakhee Gulzar’s Physical Appearance
Rakhee has a graceful and elegant look that made her stand out from the very beginning. She stands at around 5 feet 2 inches. She has beautiful hazel eyes and black hair, and over the years her simple yet striking appearance became her signature. She never needed heavy makeup or fancy styling to look good on screen. Her natural beauty and expressive face did all the work. Even today, when people talk about the most beautiful actresses of old Bollywood, her name always comes up.
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Rakhee Gulzar’s Age, Birth Date and Birthplace
Rakhee was born on 15th August 1947 in Ranaghat, a town in the Nadia district of West Bengal. That means she was born on the very day India got its independence. Her father ran a shoe business. The family originally came from Meherpur, which is now in Bangladesh, but after the partition they settled in West Bengal. Unlike many actors who come from film families, Rakhee had no connections in the industry at all. She got her early education in a local girls’ school in Ranaghat and then found her way into films purely through talent and luck.
Rakhee Gulzar Family
Rakhee comes from a simple Bengali family. Her father was a businessman who dealt in shoes. Her mother was a homemaker. She had no brothers or sisters in the film line, and nobody in her family had ever acted before. Later in life, she built her own film family. Her husband is Gulzar, one of India’s most respected poets, lyricists and filmmakers. Her daughter Meghna Gulzar is a well-known director who has made films like Raazi, Chhapaak and Sam Bahadur. So while Rakhee started with no film background, she ended up creating a legacy that continues through her daughter.
Rakhee Gulzar Husband and Relationship
Rakhee’s personal life has seen its share of ups and downs. When she was still a teenager, she had an arranged marriage with a Bengali journalist and film director named Ajoy Biswas. But the marriage did not last long, and the couple got divorced soon after. Then, in 1973, Rakhee married Sampooran Singh Kalra, who the whole world knows as Gulzar. He was already a famous lyricist and writer by then. The couple has one daughter, Meghna Gulzar. However, when Meghna was just one year old, Rakhee and Gulzar separated. They never officially divorced, but they started living separately. Despite this, they always maintained a respectful relationship and both focused on raising their daughter well. Today, Meghna is one of the most successful directors in Bollywood, and that is something both parents are very proud of.
Rakhee Gulzar’s Education and Career
Rakhee did her schooling in a local girls’ school in Ranaghat, West Bengal. There is no record of her going to college or university for higher studies. Acting found her early. At the age of 20, she made her film debut with the Bengali film Badhu Bharan in 1967. The film did well, and people noticed her right away. Then Sunil Dutt recommended her for a Hindi film, and she got her Bollywood break with Jeevan Mrityu in 1970, opposite Dharmendra. After that came Sharmeelee in 1971 opposite Shashi Kapoor, and the pair became very popular. They did nine films together.
Her real turning point came in the early 1970s with films like Aankhon Aankhon Mein and Daag: A Poem of Love. For Daag, she won her first Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress. Then in 1976, two films changed everything for her — Yash Chopra’s Kabhi Kabhie and Rajshri Productions’ Tapasya. For Tapasya, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress. She also did many memorable films with Amitabh Bachchan like Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Kaala Patthar, Shakti and Kabhi Kabhie. In fact, she is perhaps the only actress who played both his heroine and his mother on screen.
As she grew older, she smoothly moved into character roles. She played strong mother figures in hit films like Ram Lakhan (1989), for which she won another Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress, Baazigar (1993), Karan Arjun (1995), Border (1997) and Soldier (1998). Her last major film was Shubho Mahurat in 2003, directed by Rituparno Ghosh, for which she won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress. After that, she stepped away from acting and has lived a quiet life ever since.
Rakhee Gulzar’s Net Worth
Rakhee has never publicly shared her net worth, but estimates suggest it is in the range of ₹50 to ₹100 crore. This comes from her long film career, properties including her farmhouse in Panvel, and her family’s overall standing in the film industry. As with most celebrity net worth figures, this is only an approximation and not a confirmed fact.
Final Word
The story of Rakhee Gulzar is one of a small-town girl who had no film background but still became one of the biggest names in Indian cinema. From her debut in a Bengali film in 1967 to winning the Padma Shri in 2003, she has done it all. She played lead heroines, she played mothers, she won awards, and she worked with the biggest stars of her time. Today, she lives a peaceful and private life at her farmhouse near Mumbai, spending her time with animals, growing vegetables and reading books. Her daughter, Meghna Gulzar, is carrying the family legacy forward in films. Rakhee will always be remembered as one of the finest and most graceful actresses Bollywood has ever seen.
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