Neetu Singh, The Cinema Queen of the 70s

A glamorous actress and the wife of a famous movie star; this is mainly what Neetu Singh's life is perceived to be characterised by. But there's more to the life of this self-made star, both on and off screen.

The ever-glamorous Neetu Singh turns 63; Image Source: The Personage

While speaking of Neetu Singh, most people would say “one of the most adored stars of the 1970s”. Her charm and beauty stole the hearts of countless people watching her. But her career as a film star began long before that.

The teen icon of the 70s, Neetu Singh was actually named Harneet Kaur when born. She had a rather early start in the world of Indian cinema.

She began acting at the tender age of 6 as a child artist in the movie Suraj (1966).

Her role was uncredited, which is the reason why we don’t know much about this phase of her life. Her only highly appreciated role was that of twin sisters from the movie Do Kaliyaan. Her first lead role only came about to her in 1973 in the movie Rickshawala, which she played next to Randhir Kapoor. Hereafter, she began to be accredited as Neetu Singh.

Then, in 1975, after she played the lead roles in two romantic films - Rafoo Chakkar and Khel Khel Mein alongside Rishi Kapoor, these two became popular as an on-screen pair. Their chemistry and charm were unmatched.

After this, she went on to play lead roles alongside Shashi Kapoor and Rajesh Khanna, but, her romance on-screen only clicked with Rishi Kapoor, and while shooting Kabhie Kabhie, she became involved with him romantically even off-screen.

The most successful film of her life was shot right after this in 1977: Amar Akbar Anthony, she played the role of a doctor who falls in love with a singer, the role of which was played by Rishi Kapoor. She also made two hits with Jeetendra and Amitabh Bacchan in this period.

Neetu Singh continued to make films well into the 70s and got nominated for Filmfare awards too. However, her career came to a halt when she got married. The responsibilities of being a homemaker fell upon her and she officially retired from acting in the year 1980.

It was not until 2009, till she made an appearance in the film Love Aaj Kal. Although it was merely a cameo, she was finally back on-screen after 25 years.

This excited a lot of people and many film critics began contemplating her full-fledged comeback. So, it did. Hereafter, she played several roles of a mother, paired alongside her husband Rishi Kapoor.

Neetu Singh is a stark example of battling the odds by starting out small to becoming one of the most celebrated actresses of her time.