Iconic Women Helen R Khan

Helen Richardson Khan, considered as the dance icon and feminity in Bollywood, was born in Burma. Her father, George Desmier, was Anglo Indian and mother, Marlene, was a Burmese. After her father went missing during the World War-II, her family migrated to India in 1942 as refugees, escaping the Japanese invasion of Burma. She was the first actress to introduce cabaret and belly dance in Indian films.

Helen was introduced to Bollywood by Cuckoo, a popular dancer, in 1953. However, she got a break in 1958, after her performance in the movie “Howrah Bridge’s” song, “Mera Naam Chin Chin Choo”. She has played multi ethnic characters in different movies. For example, she played the role of an Anglo Indian gold digger in “Gumnaam” (1965). Remember the song “gumnaam hai koi”? She played a German Spy in “Ek Se Badhkar Ek” (1976), a Chinese night club dancer in the movie “Howrah Bridge” (1958), and an Indian fisher-woman in the movie “Inkaar” (1977). She also played the role of an Italian friend of Vyjayanthimala in “Prince” (1969), an African woman in Hulchul (1971) and as a Burmese woman in “Lahu Ke Do Rang” (1979). She was nominated as the Best Supporting Actress Award for “Gumnaam” (1965), “Shikar” (1968) and “Elaan” (1971), but lost all of them.

She seldom got any chances of the lead heroines. So, she rather opted for dancing, and that made her immensely popular. Throughout 60’s to 70’s, she danced in over 700 movies, and carved a niche for herself as a prolific dancer. She was seen wearing colourful wigs, contact lenses, and skimpy outfits, portraying herself as an ultra-modern female, which she was. And, needless to say, why she has set the fashion trends. Even today people look up to her previous versions to grab some fashion lessons. She was a big-time fan of Gene Kelly and Ann Margaret.

She was topping the charts during 1950’s and 60’s for playing the role of a vamp. She was also considered a sex symbol in the 1960s and 1970s, and was referred to as the H-Bomb in movie magazines. Being scared of the scope of being harassed, she always wore a burqa in the public places.

Towards the late 70’s, her demand started dropping down due to the new entrants like Aruna Irani, Kalpana Iyer, Bindu, and others. In 1979, she won the best supporting actress award for her role in “Lahu Ke Do Rang”. She played the character of Vinod Khanna's wife. She officially retired from movies in 1981 after marrying screenwriter Salim Khan.

In 1957, Helen's first marriage took place, with Prem Narayan Arora, director of “Dil Daulat Duniya”. He was 27 years older than her. Gradually, she found out that he was spending her money without her consent, which led her to bankruptcy and her apartment was confiscated. She divorced him in 1974. Before that she had met Salim Khan in 1962, on the sets of “Kabli Khan” (1963), wherein she was playing the role of a protagonist as well as the vamp. They were friends, but seven years after her divorce, she married Salim Khan in 1981. She is Salman Khan’s step mom. She was honoured with Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999, and Padma Shri, a civilian honour from the Indian government in 2009.