Zeba Bakhtiar, a Pakistani actress began her career in a TV drama called Anarkali where she played the title-role. The depth of this character had to be played with such intensity that Bakhtiar was lauded with praises by critics and fans alike. This also proved to be a stepping stone for her entry into films, and in Bollywood at that. She was once touted to be the ‘next biggest thing from Pakistan’, as far as Bollywood was concerned. Bakhtiar, this Pakistani doll-like beauty, was cast in a major Hindi feature film “Henna” in 1991, and despite being her debut lead-role, whether on home ground or otherwise, Bakhtiar’s performance was heavily praised, both across the border and back home in Pakistan.
Alas her subsequent Indian films did quite poorly at the box-office and so Bakhtiar chose to return to Pakistan and continue movies there. 1995 saw the release of ‘Sargam’ where she bagged the honorary Nigar Award, one of the foremost recognitions for excellence in Pakistani cinema. Thereafter, Bakhtiar went on to star in more movies in Pakistan, as well as take on some very serious roles in TV serials.
