Zeenat Aman was born to a Hindu mother and a Muslim father Amanullah who was one of the writers for the classic "Mughal-e-Azam", on November 19th, 1951. Zeenat was an only child and her parents divorced when she was a little girl. A graduate of Saint Xavier's school in Bombay. Her father passed away when she was 13. Zeenat won a scholarship to study in California. Upon her return she started working as reporter and was introduced to modelling by friends. Her most prominent ad campaign was the Pond's 7 day to better complexion (later models for the campaign were Sonu Walia and Kimi Katkar). Zeenat entered the Miss India contest and was the third runner up, to go to Miss Asia/Pacific a title she later won - being the first Indian to ever win that title (the same title was brought to Indian a second time in 2000 by Diya Mirza).Zeenat was introduced to the movie screen by O.P. Ralhan in Hulchul with Kabir Bedi and later repeated by again by Ralhan in a cameo in Hungama. Both films sunk without trace. Zeenat was the third choice for the junkie 'Janice/Jasbeel' character in Dev Anand's 'Hare Rama Hare Krishna', opposite himself and the tehn reigning queen Mumtaz. Upon completion of shooting, Zeenat began packing bags to move to Malta with her mother and German step father (Mr. Heinz) for his job posting. When Dev Anand received feedback on rushes for the film, he insisted that Zeenat and her parents hold off on the move until the film is released and its fate decided, with reluctance they agreed. The film was an instant hit and Zeenat walked away with all the accolades shunning Mumtaz - never before had the Hindi cinema seen a newcomer overshadow the reigning queen. Nor had the Indian audience ever accepted a woman who played a 'less than pure' role in a movie.Zeenat went on to revolutionise the Hindi film actress. She was the first Indian actress who wasn't a good dancer, who refused bouffants, cropped a bob at the height of her career and hardly appeared in saris and bindis. She took on roles of the modern urban Indian woman, who made no excuses and took no prisoners. Zeenat began a new trend, helping launch careers for male actors - something Indian actresses never did. She signed Insaf Ka Tarazu with then unknown Raj Babbar and Deepak Prashar, pushed Mithun to many of her producers when he was considered a jinx (Rekha didnt' work with Mithun till Jaal, because he was too small time for her then) and ofcourse Kanwaljeet Singh (Ashanti) and Tariq Ali (hum Kissi se Kum Nahin and Yadon Ki Baarat). Zeenat had a long string of super successes throughout her career but towards the end of her career as she took on mature roles in Bhavani Junction, Haathon ki Lakeerain, Bandhan Kacche Dhagon Ka etc. the movies did not fare well at the box office and with the advent of Sridevi and Jaya Pradha, the audience shifted its focus to front bench whistlers. Zeenat settled in matrimony turning down multiple offers. Zeenat's contribution to the Indian cinema is not fully recognised as yet, but in time to come she will definitely be remembered as the first person to introduce a lot to India and add several dimentions to Indian women. In summary "She revolutionised the portrayal of Indian Women" in its cinema.
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