Asha Parekh: Shakila was by my side when my father passed away

File photo of Nasir Khan with Shakila

Hindi cinema actor from the '50s, Shakila passed away on Wednesday after suffering a heart attack. She was 82. Shakila had featured in hit films Hatim Tai (1956), Aar Paar (1954), CID (1956) and China Town (1962). Her nephew, actor Nasir Khan, told mid-day, "She wasn't keeping well and had been in and out of the hospital. She was diagnosed with a kidney ailment recently and was on dialysis, which led to further complications."

Shakila

Khan is the son of late comedian Johnny Walker, who married Shakila's sister, Noor. "My father was fond of her (Shakila). She was a social person, full of life. She was always surrounded by people," he remembered.

Asha Parekh

Shakila is best remembered for the song Babuji Dheere Chalna. The late actor's close friend and veteran actor Asha Parekh said, "She was always there for others. She was by my side when my father passed away. Waheeda [Rehman], Nanda and Shakila were a gang. She was a soft-spoken and kind person, hardly ever raised her voice. Saira [Banu] was trying to get her admitted to a hospital and was with her yesterday."

Born Badshah Begum on January 1, 1935, Shakila had two younger sisters, Noor and Nasreen, who were also actors. She was introduced to the movies by filmmaker Abdul Rashid Kardar, who offered her a role in Dastaan (1950). She shot to fame with Guru Dutt's Aar Paar, in which she played the other woman in Dutt's life. Shakila starred in CID, a role overshadowed by Waheeda Rehman. She quit cinema after acting in close to 50 films.