One of the legendary actresses of her generation, Meena Kumari's life wasn't a bed of roses. Despite being a bankable actress in the initial period of her life, she dealt with financial struggles in the last days and was called the ‘tragedy queen’. For the unversed, Meena once fell in love with an already-married man, Kamal Amrohi, and became a victim of domestic abuse in her marriage. Thus, they got divorced in 1968. But after this, Meena succumbed to her reckless alcoholic behaviour due to prolonged depression, and her health gradually deteriorated. Then, she was diagnosed with liver cirrhosis, and after being in a coma for quite some time, she left the mortal planes on March 31, 1972, at the mere age of 38.
It was only a month after the release of her last film, Pakeezah, directed by Kamal Amrohi that Meena Kumari left for the heavenly abode, leaving a void in her close ones and millions of fans' lives. However, the actor faced huge financial struggles in the last few days before her untimely death. So much so, that her family couldn't bear the fees of her hospitalisation. And in a throwback interview with Rediff in 2014, ace director, Bimal Roy’s daughter, Rinki Roy Bhattacharya revealed that Meena Kumari's family was also unable to pay Rs. 3500 to release her dead body due to their unstable state of finances. Rinki shared:
“When this actress of high calibre, the reigning Goddess of cinema breathed her last on the afternoon of March 31, 1972, at 3:25 pm in St Elizabeth’s nursing home, she did not have Rs 3,500 required to release her body.”
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However, as Meena Kumari etched an unerasable place in millions of hearts, she also had an ardent fan inside the hospital. Thus, to help her family get her dead body, Meena's physician paid the amount of Rs. 3500 and released her body from the hospital. In the same interview, Rinki made another shocking revelation that only with the physician's help could the family bury the legendary actress's last remains. Rinki revealed:
“It was a miracle when her physician bailed out the family."
Earlier, in a 2021 interview with Rediff, Lata Mangeshkar, who shared a close bond with Meena Kumari had opened up about the former's one such visit to the latter before her untimely death. Lata, who gave her priceless voice to many of Meena’s hit characters, revealed that she went to meet her friend after learning about the latter's deteriorating health. Lata mentioned that although Meena greeted her warmly and offered her tea, the singer could easily understand that the actress wasn't able to offer her anything other than her warmth. Recalling how she lost her friend a few days after that, Lata had shared:
“I came to know she (Meena Kumari) was extremely ill. When I reached her place with flowers, she said, ‘Allah, aap yahan aaye, main badi khush-kismat hoon’. We chatted. She asked me for tea, though I sensed she was in no position to offer me anything except her warmth in that condition. She passed away a little later.”
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Once, the ace filmmaker, Saawan Kumar Tak had also claimed that he paid Rs. 15,000 worth of bills as Meena Kumari's hospital fees. In an interview with Filmfare, Saawan revealed that he was also one of the passionate fans of the legendary actress. However, Meena was dealing with prolonged health issues and had to bear Rs. 15,000 as her hospital fees. Thus, Saawan came into the frame and paid the bill. Moreover, Saawan also mentioned that he shouldered her coffin after she passed away. In Saawan's words:
“I once footed the bill of Rs 15,000. I sold my Standard car for this. She died a few weeks after that. I gave her kandha (shouldered her coffin). Meenaji faced much heartbreak in her life. Roses and handsome men could not take away her tragedies.”
We are shocked to learn about Meena Kumari's financial condition in the last days of her life. What about you? Let us know!
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