Ray introduced Sharmila Tagore in Apur Sansar, the final film of the Apu Trilogy. She played the young wife Aparna. She was just a fourteen-year-old then, with no previous acting experience. As the shooting began, Ray had to shout instructions to Sharmila during the takes. None of this, however, is reflected on the screen. Ray cast her in his next film Devi too.

She went on to become a very successful actress in Bombay’s Hindi films. She returned to work in later Ray films – Nayak, Aranyer Din Ratri and Seemabaddha.

Aradhana with Rajesh Khanna was one of the most successful films of 1970’s. In Gulzar’s Mausam, she played a memorable role of a prostitute. Her later notable films include Amanush, Anand Ashram and New Delhi Times.

She married the former cricketer Nawab Ali Saif Ali Khan Khan Pataudi, and has a son – who is one of the leading actors of Bombay cinema.

Awards Received By Sharmila Tagore

Civilian honors

2013 – Padma Bhushan

National Film Awards

1975 – National Film Award for Best Actress — Mausam
2003 – National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress — Abar Aranye

Filmfare Awards

1970 – Filmfare Award for Best Actress — Aradhana
1998 – Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award

Anandalok Awards

2010 – Lifetime Achievement Award

Screen Awards

2002 – Lifetime Achievement Award
2014 – Sanskriti Kalashree Award, Lifetime Achievement

Films Done By Sharmila Tagore

1959 Apur Sansar (The World of Apu) Satyajit Ray Aparna Bengali
1960 Devi (The Goddess) Satyajit Ray Doyamoyee Bengali
1963 Shes Anko Haridas Bhattacharya Mala Bengali
1963 Nirjan Saikate Tapan Sinha Renu Bengali
1963 Barnali Ajoy Kar Aloka Choudhury Bengali
1963 Chhaya Shurjo Partha Pratim Chowdhury Ghentoo Bengali
1964 Kashmir Ki Kali Shakti Samanta Champa Hindi
1965 Waqt Yash Chopra Renu Khanna Hindi
1965 Dak Ghar Zul Vellani guest appearance Hindi
1966 Anupama Hrishikesh Mukherjee Uma Sharma Hindi
1966 Devar Mohan Sehgal Madhumati / Banwariya Hindi
1966 Sawan Ki Ghata Shakti Samanta Seema Hindi
1966 Nayak Satyajit Ray Aditi Bengali
1966 Yeh Raat Phir Na Aayegi Brij Kiran / Kiranmai Hindi
1967 Milan Ki Raat R.Bhattacharya Hindi
1967 An Evening in Paris Shakti Samanta Deepa Malik/Roopa Malik (Suzy) Hindi
1967 Aamne Saamne Suraj Prakash Sapna Mathur / Sapna G. Mittal Hindi
1968 Mere Hamdam Mere Dost Amar Kumar Anita Hindi
1968 Humsaya Joy Mukherjee Leena Sen Hindi
1969 Yakeen Brij Rita Hindi
1969 Satyakam Hrishikesh Mukherjee Ranjana Hindi
1969 Talash O. P. Ralhan Madhu / Gauri Hindi
1969 Aradhana Shakti Samanta Vandhana Tripathi Hindi
1970 Aranyer Din Ratri (Days and Nights in the Forest) Satyajit Ray Aparna Bengali
1970 Suhana Safar Vijay Sapna Hindi
1970 Mere Humsafar Dulal Guha Taruna/Meenakshi Hindi
1970 My Love S. Sukhdev Sangeeta Thakur Hindi
1970 Safar Asit Sen Neela Kapoor Hindi
1971 Seemabaddha Satyajit Ray Tutul Bengali
1971 Chhoti Bahu K.B. Tilak Radha Hindi
1972 Amar Prem Shakti Samanta Pushpa Hindi
1972 Dastaan B.R.Chopra Meena Hindi
1972 Yeh Gulistan Hamara Atma Ram Soo Reni Hindi
1973 Raja Rani Sachin Bhowmick Nirmala / Rani Hindi
1973 Daag Yash Chopra Sonia Kohli Hindi
1973 Aa Gale Lag Jaa Manmohan Desai Preeti Hindi
1974 Shaandaar Hindi
1974 Avishkaar Basu Bhattacharya Mansi Hindi
1975 Mausam Gulzar Chanda/Kajli Hindi
1975 Chupke Chupke Hrishikesh Mukherjee Sulekha Chaturvedi Hindi
1975 Faraar Shanker Mukherjee Mala/Asha Hindi
1975 Ek Mahal Ho Sapno Ka Devendra Goel Aruna Hindi
1975 Amanush Shakti Samanta Lekha Bengali
1976 Ek Se Badhkar Ek Brij Rekha Hindi
1977 Anand Ashram Shakti Samanta Asha Bengali
1978 Besharam Deven Verma Rinku/Monica Hindi
1979 Chuvanna Chirakukal Jayan Malayalam
1979 Dooriyaan Bhimsain Khurana Hindi
1981 Kalankini Kankabati Uttam Kumar Aparna/Kanka Bengali
1982 Namkeen Gulzar Nimki Hindi
1982 Desh Premee Manmohan Desai Bharti Hindi
1983 Protidan Prabhat Roy Gouri
1983 Gehri Chot – Urf: Durdesh Ambrish Sangal (India), Ehtesham (Bangladesh) Shobha Bengali
1984 Sunny Raj Khosla Sitara Hindi
1988 Anurodh Jayanta Bhattarcharya Jaya/Maya Bengali
1991 Mississippi Masala Mira Nair Kinnu English
1993 Aashiq Awara Umesh Mehra Mrs. Singh Hindi
1999 Mann Indra Kumar Dev’s grandmother Hindi
2000 Dhadkan Dharmesh Darshan Dev’s mother Hindi
2002 Abar Aranye Goutam Ghose Ashim’s wife – Aprana Bengali
2003 Shubho Mahurat Rituparno Ghosh Padmini Chowdhury Bengali
2005 Viruddh… Family Comes First Mahesh Manjrekar Sumitra Patwardhan Hindi
2006 Eklavya: The Royal Guard Vidhu Vinod Chopra Suhasinidevi Hindi
2007 Fool and Final Ahmed Khan Bhabi Hindi
2008 Tasveer 8*10 Nagesh Kukunoor Savithri Puri Hindi
2009 Antaheen Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury Pishima Bengali
2009 Morning Walk Arup Dutta Neelima Hindi
2009 Samaantar Amol Palekar Shama Vaze Marathi
2010 Break Ke Baad Danish Aslam Ayesha Khan