Tabu, Indian actress
Tabassum Fatima Hashmi (born 4 November 1971), better known by her stage name Tabu, is an Indian actress who primarily works in Hindi films, alongside Telugu and Tamil language films. Regarded as one of the most accomplished actresses in India, Tabu has often played troubled, complicated women in a range of characters, from fictional to literary, in both mainstream and independent cinema, as well as some American productions. She is the recipient of numerous accolades, including two National Film Awards for Best Actress and six Filmfare Awards, including a record four awards for Best Actress (Critics). In 2011, the Government of India awarded her the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian honour of the country.Tabu's first credited role came as a teenager in Dev Anand's Hum Naujawan (1985), but her first role as a lead was in the Telugu film Coolie No. 1 (1991). In 1994, she received the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut for the Hindi action drama Vijaypath. The year 1996 was key for Tabu, as her performance as a young woman affected by the Punjab insurgency in Gulzar's Maachis won her the National Film Award for Best Actress. Moreover, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu for the romance Ninne Pelladata and gained commercial success with the comedy film Saajan Chale Sasural. In 1999 she played supporting roles in the top-grossing Bollywood films of the year—the comedy Biwi No.1, and the family drama Hum Saath-Saath Hain. Further acclaim from critics came her way during these years for her roles in Virasat (1997), Hu Tu Tu (1999), Astitva (2000), and Chandni Bar (2001), the former three winning her Filmfare Critics Awards, and the latter earning her a second National Film Award.
Tabu's literary characters were in films such as Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000), an adaptation of Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility, as well as a role based on Lady Macbeth in Maqbool (2004), an adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth. Her first international project came in 2006 with Mira Nair's adaptation of Jhumpa Lahiri's novel The Namesake. For her starring role in Cheeni Kum (2007) she received a record fourth Filmfare Critics Award, and she took on fewer film projects over the next few years. She played a prostitute in the Telugu film Pandurangadu (2008) and appeared briefly in Ang Lee's adventure film Life of Pi (2012). In 2014, she starred alongside Salman Khan in Jai Ho and garnered critical acclaim for playing the Gertrude character in Haider, an adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet. She won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for the latter. Tabu went on to star in the ensemble horror comedy Golmaal Again, and continued to receive praise for playing a police-officer in Drishyam (2015) and a murderess in Andhadhun (2018). The latter ranks among the highest-grossing Indian films. She is reluctant to discuss her personal life in the media.