Jaya Bachchan was born as Jaya Bhaduri in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, on April 9, 1948. Her father Taroon Kumar Bhaduri was a famous author and poet. He was the author of the famous book Obhishopto Chambol (Cursed Chambal), which chronicled his experiences as a journalist/writer in the area. Over the years, the book has become the fodder for dacoit-based films in Bollywood. 

Jaya Bachchan is a gold medallist from the Film and Television Institute of India, Pune. At age 15 in 1963, she made her debut in Satyajit Ray's Bengali film Mahanagar. Ray bagged the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 14th Berlin International Film Festival for the film, Mahanagar was also selected as the Indian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 36th Academy Awards.

As an adult, Jaya Bachchan's first role was in the memorable Bollywood film Guddi (1971), directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee. She was nominated for Filmfare Best Actress Award for her role in the film.

Koshish (1972), in which she and Sanjeev Kumar played a deaf and mute couple with utmost conviction, is considered among Jaya Bachchan's best performances ever.

Interestingly, Jaya Bachchan played Sanjeev Kumar's daughter in another film that released the same year, the film was titled Parichay.

Jaya Bachchan's strength as a lead heroine was her adaptability in playing roles. She was equally adept at commercial as well as offbeat cinema, which explains her success while collaborating with directors as diverse as Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Gulzar, Ramesh Sippy and Prakash Mehra.

Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan worked together for the first time in the 1972 film Bansi Birju. However, Big B had made a special appearance in Guddi.

Amitabh and Jaya went on to act opposite each other in a number of memorable films. During this time, the duo eventually fell in love.

Some of Big B-Jaya's famous films as a pair are Zanjeer (1973), Abhimaan (1973), Mili (1975), Chupke Chupke (1975), Sholay (1975) and Silsila (1981).

Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan got married on June 3, 1973. The couple has two children: Shweta Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan. While Shweta married businessman Nikhil Nanda, Abhishek married to his frequent co-star Aishwarya Rai.

Jaya Bachchan was pregnant with her first child Shweta during the filming of Sholay. Shweta Bachchan was born on March 17, 1974.

Following Yash Chopra's Silsila, Jaya decided to take a prolonged break from acting to concentrate on her family and raising her children.

Amitabh and Jaya's second child, Abhishek, was born on February 5, 1976.

After a huge gap of 17 years, Jaya Bachchan returned to the big screen with the 1998 film Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa. The film dealt with the life of a woman who loses her son, a Naxalite, to the violence that is a result of his adopted ideology. Needless to say, Jaya Bachchan was lauded for this role.

Did you know Jaya Bachchan had produced the popular sitcom Dekh Bhai Dekh? The actress turned producer in the early 90s with this show.

Since the turn of the millennium, she has acted in a handful of films, a couple of which have been major hits, namely Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham and Kal Ho Naa Ho.

Apart from acting, she is also a Samajwadi Party MP.

Pictured: Jaya Bachchan with the cast of Tere Mere Sapne, which was produced under the A.B.C.L. banner (Amitabh Bachchan Corporation Limited).

Jaya Bachchan is a grandmother of three. Navya Naveli Nanda and Agastya Nanda, are Shweta Bachchan's kids, while Aaradhya Bachchan, is the daughter of Abhishek and Aishwarya.

For her contribution to cinema, Jaya was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1992. Pictured: Jaya with late veteran actor Shammi and Asha Parekh.

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Jaya Bhaduri Bachchan!