Veteran actor Shammi dies at 89

Mumbai: Veteran actor Shammi, who acted in over 200 films and some popular television serials and was known for her impeccable comic timing, died today after a prolonged illness. She was 89.

Born as Nargis Rabadi in a Parsi family, Shammi featured in many popular films, including “Ustad Pedro”, “Bhai- Bahen”, “Dil Apna Aur Preet Parayi”, “Half Ticket”, “Jab Jab Phool Khile”, “Ittefaq”, “The Burning Train”, “Kudrat”, “Awara Baap”, “Swarg”, “Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi” and others.

She also acted in quite a few popular TV serials, such as “Dekh Bhai Dekh”, “Zabaan Sambhal Ke”, “Shriman Shrimati”, “Kabhi Yeh Kabhi Woh” and “Filmi Chakkar”. Shammi was married to film producer director Sultan Ahmed for seven years, before they got divorced.

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan took to social media to express his grief over her demise. “Shammi Aunty… Prolific actress, years of contribution to the industry, dear family friend…passes away…! A long suffered illness, age. Sad… slowly slowly they all go away,” Bachchan said in a post on Twitter.

Former Congress MP Priya Dutt, the daughter of late actors Sunil Dutt and Nargis Dutt, also expressed her condolences. “Shammi, aunty to me and a great actor of yesteryears, passed away today. She was my mother’s dear friend and someone we all loved very much. May her soul rest in peace and her laughter and contagious smile rock the heavens. Be In peace with your friends,” Dutt tweeted.