Top 17 Yesteryear Bollywood Actresses Who Never Got Married
Posted On: 02 May 2019 | Last Updated : 06 Apr 2022 | Views : 3.5k
Bollywood is a strange place where despite having so many fans and admirers with all the fame, success and money one remains lonely and secluded. Where many Bollywood celebs end up marrying not once but multiple times for some marriage is not the be-all and end-all of life. Blame it on the fate or circumstances some famous yesteryear actresses remained unmarried all their lives leaving their fans wondering why at all they never tied the nuptial knot. For reasons best known and unknown them, these 15 yesteryear Bollywood actresses unfortunately never found their perfect match all through their lives even after bidding goodbye to the arch lights.
1. Suraiya
One of Bollywood’s top stars of the 40s and 50s, Suraiya was known as Malika-e-Husn and Malika-E-Tarannum who mesmerized fans with her acting and singing skills. The top actress who worked in movies like Anmol Ghadi, Pyaar Ki Jeet, Afsar, Sanam, Shama Parwana, Mirza Ghalib, etc., remained unmarried till her last breath. Except for a few rumoured linkups with co-stars, her relationship with Dev Anand made headlines but could not materialize into marriage because of religious differences; Suraiya remained an unmarried woman all her life. She died of heart disease and insulinoma in 2004.
2. Asha Parekh
Asha Parekh was one of Bollywood’s popular actresses of the 60s and 70s who played the lead in successful movies like Dil Deke Dekho, Chhaya, Ziddi, Love in Tokyo, Teesri Manzil, Upkar, Kati Patang, but unfortunately never found her perfect match. Though she romanced all the top heroes of her time including Shammi Kapoor, Jeetendra, Dev Anand, Joy Mukherji, Rajesh Khanna, Dharmendra, and others, her only well-known linkup reportedly was with director Nasir Husain that couldn’t culminate into marriage for he was already a married man. Asha Parekh turned to ‘bhabhi’ and mother roles later in her acting career but remains unmarried to date.
3. Nanda
The epitome of style and grace, Nanda was another popular Bollywood actress of the 60s and early 70s who remained single and never married. Despite romancing most of the leading heroes on-screen like Dev Anand, Shashi Kapoor, Rajesh Khanna, Manoj Kumar, Rajendra Kumar and Jeetendra, the actress failed to find true love during her heydays. Her engagement with famous director Manmohan Desai was short-lived as the latter died in 1994 under mysterious circumstances. Nanda passed away at the age of 75 in 2014 but her performances in Chhoti Bahen, Dhool Ka Phool, Bhabhi, Kala Bazar, Kanoon, Hum Dono, Jab Jab Phool Khile, Gumnaam, Ittefaq, remain memorable.
4. Priya Rajvansh
Priya Rajvansh was another learned Bollywood actress who never married all her life. Known for being the muse of late director Chetan Anand who gave her a break in Haqeeqat in 1964, Priya led a very secretive life after the passing away of the director. She had to fight a legal battle with Chetan’s sons who reportedly killed her in 2000 over a property dispute. She remained a Chetan Anand heroine throughout her career as she worked in films like Heer Ranjha, Hanste Zakhm, Sahid Bahadur and Kudrat.
5. Anju Mahendru
Known more for her long-term relationship with actor Rajesh Khanna, Anju Mahendru never got married for she was heartbroken after the former suddenly married actress Dimple Kapadia in 1973. Though Anju never made it big as a Bollywood actress but did act in films like Uski Kahani in 1966, Jewel Thief, Bandhan and Dastak before turning to TV. She reportedly did get linked up with cricketers Gary Sobers and Imtiaz Ali but nothing materialized as she preferred to live life on her own terms and do selected films.
6. Sulakshana Pandit
Sulakshana Pandit is another Bollywood actress of the 70s and 80s who remained unmarried. Despite having a decent acting and singing career in Bollywood she fell in love with actor Sanjeev Kumar who deep down was nursing his own wounds after getting rejected by then Bollywood’s latest sensation Hema Malini who was seeing the much-married Dharmendra. Sulakshana went into oblivion after Sanjeev Kumar’s death in 1985 and was hardly seen thereafter in public life. Her notable works have been in films like Uljhan, Hera Pheri, Apnapan, Sankoch, Khandaan and Raaz.
7. Parveen Babi
Known for her ravishing and suave looks, Parveen Babi was one of Bollywood’s most popular heroines of the 70s and 80s. She was not just one of the highest-paid actresses of her time but also counted as a top actress of the silver screen with blockbusters like Deewaar, Amar Akbar Anthony, Namak Halaal, Suhaag under her belt. Despite her relationships with Kabir Bedi, Danny Denzongpa and Mahesh Bhatt, she romanced all the leading men of that era on-screen like Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Shashi Kapoor, Dharmendra and Jeetendra while leading a turbulent life due to which she never married. Her return to public life in 1989 with allegations made on Amitabh Bachchan for destroying her life made matters worse. She died a loner in 2005 under mysterious circumstances.
8. Cuckoo
Cuckoo Moray, Bollywood’s top actress and dancer who was known for her dance item numbers in the 40s and 50s films, also reportedly never married for some strange and unknown reasons. Arguably one of the first item girls of the silver screen, Cuckoo was seen in movies such as Anokhi Ada (1948), Andaz (1949), Shabistan (1951), Awaara (1951), Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958), Yahudi (1958). Even after disappearing from the industry in the 1960s, it was reported that she continued to stay single and was left unattended while she died of cancer at the age of 53.
9. Laxmi Chhaya
Who can forget the girl who danced to songs like Jaan Pehchan Ho from Gumnaam or Maar Diya Jaaye from Mera Gaon Mera Desh? Well, Laxmi Chhaya the dancing seductress of the 60s and 70s surprisingly never married but her graceful dance numbers will always linger in our minds forever. Sadly, after retiring from Hindi films in 1982 she taught dancing to underprivileged children only to succumb to cancer in 2004. Laxmi Chhaya had also played the second female lead in many films like Pyar Ka Mausam, Teesri Manzil, Kanyadaan & Parwana.
10. Asha Sachdev
Many may not know but Asha Sachdev, one of the noted Bollywood actresses of the 70s and 80s also never married. An alumna of FTII, she made her Bollywood acting debut in the 1972 action-drama Double Cross which was followed by movies like Agent Vinod, Priyatama, Ek Hi Raasta, Hifazat, Woh Main Nahin and Satte Pe Satta. The reason for Asha not marrying was often quoted for the turbulent life that her mother and actress Ranjana Sachdev underwent after her marriage. Asha’s on-screen bold avatars too went against her as she remains single to date.
11. Jayalalithaa
Jayalalithaa, the actress turned politician who served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu was a lady superstar of South Indian cinema who predominantly acted in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam films as the female lead. Despite being one of the popular female leads down South during the 60s and 70s, Jayalalithaa had made her Bollywood debut as a child artiste in the 1962 film Man-Mauji starring Kishore Kumar and Sadhana. Later she featured opposite Dharmendra in the 1968 hit film Izzat which also starred Tanuja. Jayalalithaa did get linked to a few actors down South but somehow remained a spinster and unmarried till her last breath in 2016.
12. Kalpana Iyer
She may not rank among the top 10 Bollywood actresses who are unmarried but Kalpana Iyer surely would rank among one of the most popular yesteryear Bollywood actresses who are unmarried. The model turned actress is most remembered for her item numbers in Hindi films released in the 80s and 90s, too never married. Often known to be misunderstood, bold and conservative, are attributes she reasons out to remain single. Not many know that she was the first runner-up at Miss India in 1978 and also represented India at the Miss World 1978 beauty pageant. She made her acting debut in 1979 in the film Prem Jal and thereafter acted in films like Pyaara Dushman (1980), Armaan (1981), Poonam (1981), Satte Pe Satta (1982), Laadla (1994), Anjaam (1994), Raja Hindustani (1996) and Hum Saath-Saath Hain (1999).
13. Preeti Ganguly
Preeti Ganguly, daughter of legendary actor Ashok Kumar reportedly never married. Known for playing comic roles in Hindi films in the 70s and 80s, she is best remembered for her appearance in Ravi Tandon’s Khel Khel Mein (1975), Basu Chatterjee’s Khatta Meetha (1977) and Dillagi released in 1978. Though she made her acting debut in 1974 in Dhuen Ki Lakeer and Parinay, went on to act in over 40-odd films before breathing her last in 2012. Despite being over-weight initially and losing a good 50 kgs later led to health complications which kept her away from films in the 90s. Her last appearance was in the Emraan Hashmi starrer Dil Diya Hai in 2006.
14. Kitu Gidwani
Kaushalya Gidwani, more popularly known as Kitu Gidwani started her career as a top model who shifted to TV serials later and was noticed in the popular TV series, Air Hostess aired on Doordarshan in 1986. After receiving critical acclaim, she went on to do roles in films like Dance of the Wind (1997), Deepa Mehta's Earth (1998), Govind Nihalani's Rukhmavati Ki Haveli (1991) and Kamal Haasan's Abhay (2001) and Madhur Bhandarkar’s Fashion in 2008. Kitu never married and continues to remain single despite being known as one the prettiest faces of B-town in the 80s.
15. Anu Aggarwal
Born as Anita Aggarwal in 1969, Anu Aggarwal was launched by Mahesh Bhatt opposite Rahul Roy in the superhit Aashiqui in 1990. She started her career as a model and VJ and later turned to act. Despite working with top actors and banners of Bollywood after the success of Aashiqui, a serious car accident in 1999 got her out of contention as she found it hard to get back to the arch lights again. She never married but will always be remembered for her roles in films like King Uncle (1993), Khal-Naaikaa (1993), Janam Kundli (1995) and Return of Jewel Thief (1996).
16. Nadira
Mention yesteryear top 10 Bollywood actresses who never married and Nadira's name would surely feature in it. Nadira reportedly never married and remained single all her life. The actress who was known for portraying varied types of roles on-screen in films like Mehboob Khan’s Aan (1952), Raj Kapoor’s Shree 420 (1955), Dil Apna Aur Preet Parai (1960), and Julie (1975) led a rather secluded life as most of her relatives had migrated to Israel. Though she was linked to yesteryear actor Motilal with whom she had appeared in a few films, Nadira really never tried to settle down with someone. Some of her notable roles have been in films like Hanste Zakhm (1973), Ishk Ishk Ishk (1974), Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), Mama Bhanja (1977), Duniya Meri Jeb Mein (1979), Taqdeer (1983), Saagar (1985), etc. She died in 2006 at the age of 73 after suffering from multiple health problems.
17. Chitra
Actress Chitra who was one of the well-known actresses of the 50s and 60s who paired with Azaad in most of the action-adventure movies, never married in real life. The actress who had done more than a hundred films remained a spinster which she revealed in one of her interviews. Some of her notable works have been in films like Mayurpankh (1954), Zimbo (1958), O Tera Kya Kahna (1959) and Zimbo Comes to Town (1960). She also appeared in movies like Reporter Raju (1962), Tarzan and Captain Kishore (1964), Tarzan and Delilah (1964), Tarzan Aur Jalpari (1964), and Tarzan Aur Circus (1965), etc.
