Unparalleled actor in parallel cinema

On December 13, 1986, Bollywood lost one of its most brilliant actresses, Smita Patil, at the mere age of 31. In an industry where glamour often overshadows grit, she chose roles that questioned power, challenged patriarchy and held an uncomfortable mirror to society. As she passed away due to complications arising after childbirth, her death shocked the nation.

Born into a politically active family in Pune on October 17, 1955, Patil grew up watching her parents engage with social issues. She first stood in front of a camera not on a movie set, but in a Doordarshan newsroom as a newsreader. Filmmaker Shyam Benegal noticed her striking confidence and cast her in ‘Charandas Chor’.

She soon made a mark for herself with her unique character choices and instinctive acting style. At a time when female characters were often ornamental, she became the face of a movement that reimagined women on screen—complex, flawed and political. She rejected melodrama and embraced silence, stillness, and anger, which seemed subtle, yet moved the audience.

In films like Bhumika, Manthan, Arth and Mirch Masala, Patil portrayed the inner lives of women, rarely shown with such honesty. Her portrayal of Usha in Bhumika earned her a National Award at 21, while her performance in Arth remains one of Hindi cinema’s clearest commentaries on marriage, betrayal and female agency.

Her collaborations with filmmakers like Shyam Benegal and Govind Nihalani, and actors like Naseeruddin Shah, helped define the language of parallel cinema in the 1970s and '80s. Not only did she become a part of breakthrough films, she stood at the centre of these stories with an authority that felt ahead of its time.

Even beyond cinema, Patil remained vocal about issues affecting women, like dowry and representation in media. Her activism almost mirrored the themes she explored on screen.

At the same time, her personal life was never far from scrutiny, whether it was her relationship with actor Raj Babbar or her pregnancy. The circumstances surrounding her death also sparked conversations about postpartum care and medical negligence. To this day, her death anniversary leaves many of her colleagues and veterans teary-eyed as they reflect on her journey that feels unfinished.

Her legacy is not defined by the number of films, but by the way she changed the way female characters were written in Bollywood. Nearly four decades later, Patil remains a benchmark for honest storytelling. Very few actors have managed to match her magnetic screen presence. On her death anniversary, cinema mourns its loss and remembers an artiste who changed the way Indian cinema looked at women.