Shoes

Personal Info

Known For

Acting

Gender

Female

Birthday

1932-06-12

Place of Birth

Thiruvananthapuram, Travancore, British India

Padmini

Biography

Padmini (12 June 1932 – 24 September 2006) was an Indian actress and trained Bharathanatyam dancer, who acted in over 250 Indian films. She acted in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi language films. Padmini, with her elder sister Lalitha and her younger sister Ragini, were called the "Travancore sisters". Padmini was born and raised in Thiruvananthapuram, in what was then the princely state of Travancore (now the Indian state of Kerala). She was the second daughter of Sree Thankappan Pillai and Saraswathi Amma, both coming from noble Nair families. Her sisters Lalitha and Ragini, were also well known film actresses. Together, the three were known as the Travancore sisters. Padmini and her sisters learnt Bharathanatyam from Thiruvidaimarudur Mahalingam Pillai. The trio were the disciples of Indian dancer Guru Gopinath. They learnt Kathakali and Kerala Natanam styles of dancing from him. N.S. Krishnan noticed her talents while she was presenting Parijatha Pushpapaharanam in Thiruvananthapuram. After that performance, he said that in the future she would become an actress. She was thus cast as heroine in his own production Manamagal. The Travancore Sisters grew up in a joint family tharavadu (Malaya Cottage) in Poojappura, Trivandrum. The matriarchial head of the family was Karthiyayini Amma, whose husband was P.K. Pillai (Palakunnathu Krishna Pillai of Cherthala) alias "Penang Padmanabha Pillai". P.K. Pillai had six sons, of whom Satyapalan Nair (Baby) was a leading producer of many early Malayalam films. They performed at the 1955 Filmfare Awards. Padmini was a leading actress and one of the highest paid actresses of the 50s, 60s and 70s. She is also known as one of the charming beauty queens of the 50s and 60s. She was given the title "Natya Peroli" in Tamil Nadu because of her excellent Bharatnatyam performances in Tamil films. Her Tamil movie Thillana Mohanambal, is a cult classic of Tamil cinema and continues to be remembered even today. Her beautiful performance in Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai was outstanding and made her a national star.

Known for

Thiruvarutchelvar

Thiruvarutchelvar

When a dancer makes a king realise the insignificance of the worldly pleasures, he decides to devote his life to the Almighty and starts reciting tales and songs of His greatness.

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Mahabharat

Mahabharat

A version of the epic Indian poem "The Mahabharata", telling the story of the war between the families of the Pandavas and the Kauravas, descending from the same ancestor.

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Iruttinte Athmavu

Iruttinte Athmavu

Velayudhan, a mentally retarded person, lives along with his family. He shares everything with Lakshmi, his cousin. He struggles as Lakshmi leaves him and marries and old widower.

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Mera Naam Joker

Mera Naam Joker

Raju faces many hurdles and disappointments in matters of the heart throughout his life. But as a clown in a circus, he tries to make his audience laugh at the cost of his own sorrows. Along the way, Raju loves and loses, but must always keep a smile on his face because, in the words of his circus manager, "The show must go on."

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Vivahitha

Vivahitha

Meena marries her brother-in-law after her sister dies, even though she is in love with Rajendran. Years later, she meets Rajendran and is forced to confront her past.

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Chathurangam

Chathurangam

1959 Indian Malayalam-language film

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Raja Desingu

Raja Desingu

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Pesum Deivam

Pesum Deivam

After Sundaram resigns from the hospital, he goes to serve in a village but faces opposition from those practising traditional medicine. He finds himself in trouble when Meena gets pregnant.

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King and Queen

King and Queen

An impoverished woman named Rani (Padmini) escapes from her abusive and predatory drama company owner, Babu (S.S. Rajendran), after being robbed and finding herself unconscious in the car of wealthy stage actor Raja (Sivaji Ganesan). Mistaken by Raja for a rich runaway named Leela, Rani plays along and joins his new theater troupe, leading the two to fall in love. However, the vengeful Babu attempts to sabotage their romance by poisoning Raja during a live stage enactment of Socrates, setting up a dramatic climax where the lovers must overcome this deadly plot to finally unite

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Poove Poochooda Vaa

Poove Poochooda Vaa

An elderly woman who is rich lives alone in a town. However, her life changes for the better when her granddaughter comes to live with her.

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Vasthuhara

Vasthuhara

Vasthuhara (Malayalam: വാസ്തുഹാര English: The Dispossessed) is a Malayalam social film by the late G. Aravindan which looks into the lives of partition refugees from East Bengal to West Bengal.

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Laila Majnu

Laila Majnu

Khayas falls in love with Laila but her father refuses the alliance, which leaves Khayas heartbroken. Things take a turn when Laila then moves to Mecca.

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Thigambara Samiar

Thigambara Samiar

When Sattanathan, a corrupt lawyer, forces Vadivambal to marry his brother, a Chokkalingam Pillai arrives to rescue her and expose Sattanathan's activities.

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Dard Ka Rishta

Dard Ka Rishta

Time is running out for Khushbu, Ravi Sharma(Sunil Dutt)'s daughter. Her leukemia can be cured only if someone's bone marrow matches her daughter so, he goes abroad and gets in touch with her former wife (Smita Patil).

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Vaazhkai

Vaazhkai

Meenakshi, an unwed mother, leaves her baby in Nathan’s car after her lover, Moorthy, abandons her. Though Nathan takes care of the child, his girlfriend, Mohana, becomes suspicious of him.

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