Tanuja facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Tanuja
Tanuja in 2021
Born	Tanuja Samarth Bombay, Bombay Presidency, British India (present-day Mumbai, Maharashtra, India)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1952–present
Spouse(s)	Shomu Mukherjee ​ ​ (m. 1973; died 2008)​
Children	Kajol and Tanisha
Parents	Kumarsen Samarth (father) Shobhna Samarth (mother)
Family	Mukherjee-Samarth family

Tanuja Mukherjee (born Tanuja Samarth), known simply as Tanuja, is a famous Indian actress. She has mostly worked in the Hindi film industry.

Tanuja comes from the well-known Mukherjee-Samarth family of actors and filmmakers. Her mother was actress Shobhna Samarth, and her father was producer Kumarsen Samarth. She is the younger sister of the legendary actress Nutan. Tanuja was married to filmmaker Shomu Mukherjee. They have two daughters, who are also actresses: Kajol and Tanisha.

Tanuja has won two Filmfare Awards. She is famous for her roles in many Hindi films like Memdidi (1961), Jewel Thief (1967), and Haathi Mere Saathi (1971). She also starred in Bengali films such as Deya Neya (1963) and Antony Firingee (1967). Her on-screen pairs with actors like Rajesh Khanna and Dharmendra were very popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

About Tanuja's Life

Tanuja with her daughters, Kajol (left) and Tanishaa (right), at a wedding reception in 2012.

Tanuja was born into a Marathi family in Mumbai, India. Her parents were filmmaker Kumarsen Samarth and actress Shobhna Samarth. She has three sisters, including the famous actress Nutan, and one brother. Her grandmother, Rattan Bai, and cousin Nalini Jaywant were also actresses.

Tanuja's parents separated when she was a child. Her mother, Shobhana, helped Tanuja and her older sister Nutan start their acting careers. Her other sisters, Chatura and Reshma, and her brother, Jaideep, did not become actors.

Tanuja married filmmaker Shomu Mukherjee in 1973. They had two daughters, Kajol and Tanisha, both of whom became successful actresses. Kajol is married to actor Ajay Devgan. Shomu Mukherjee passed away in 2008. Tanuja is also related to other famous people in the film industry, including actors Mohnish Behl and Rani Mukherjee.

Tanuja's Acting Journey

Tanuja began her film career as a child artist. She appeared with her older sister Nutan in the film Hamari Beti (1950), where she was known as Baby Tanuja.

Early Career as an Adult

As an adult, Tanuja made her debut in the film Chhabili (1960). This movie was directed by her mother, and her sister Nutan played the main role. The film that truly launched her as a lead actress was Hamari Yaad Aayegi (1961). This movie was directed by Kidar Sharma, who had also helped other big stars like Raj Kapoor and Madhubala start their careers.

One of her early films that showed her great acting skills was Baharen Phir Bhi Aayengi (1966). She received her first nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in the spy film Jewel Thief (1967). She then starred in Izzat (1968) with Dharmendra. This was followed by Jeene Ki Raah (1969), which became a big hit. In the same year, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her work in Paisa Ya Pyaar.

Success in the 1970s

After the success of Haathi Mere Saathi (1971), Tanuja acted in many other popular films. These included Mere Jeevan Saathi (1972), Do Chor (1972), and Anubhav (1971). She also worked in some Marathi films like Zaakol and Unad Maina.

Bengali Films

In the mid-1960s, Tanuja also started acting in Bengali movies in Kolkata. Her first Bengali film was Deya Neya (1963), where she starred opposite Uttam Kumar. She continued to make successful Bengali films like Anthony-Firingee (1967) and Rajkumari (1970). Tanuja was known for her great chemistry with actor Soumitra Chatterjee in films like Teen Bhuvaner Parey (1969). She even spoke her own lines in these Bengali films.

Later Career

Tanuja took a break from films for several years. She returned to acting later, often taking on supporting roles. For example, in Khud-Daar (1982), her former co-star Amitabh Bachchan played a role where he called her "bhabhi" (sister-in-law). She also had a supporting role in Raj Kapoor's film Prem Rog (1982). In 1986, she acted in the Sinhalese film Peralikarayo in Sri Lanka.

More recently, Tanuja has appeared in films like Saathiya (2002), Rules: Pyaar Ka Superhit Formula (2003), and Khakee (2003). In 2008, she was a judge on the TV dance show Rock-N-Roll Family with her daughter Kajol and son-in-law Ajay Devgan. In 2013, Tanuja played a widow in the Marathi film Pitruroon. For this role, she even shaved her head to make her character look very real.

Awards and Recognitions

Tanuja has received several awards for her acting.

• 1964 - Bengal Film Journalists Association Award for Best Supporting Actress (Hindi) for Benazir
• 1970 - Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for Paisa Ya Pyaar
• 2013 - Best Actress Award for Marathi Movie Pitruroon at the 20th Life OK Screen Awards
• 2014 - Lifetime Achievement Honour at Apsara Film & Television Producers Guild Award
• 2014 - Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award

Filmography

Television Shows