Zohra Sehgal dies in Delhi aged 102

Celebrated Indian actress and choreographer Zohra Sehgal has died in Delhi on July 10 at the age of 102.

Zohra Sehgal had been ill for several days and suffered a heart attack at a city hospital on Thursday evening.

In a career spanning more than seven decades, Zohra Sehgal entertained millions of people through her performances in films and on stage.

Zohra Sehgal began her career with well-known dancer Uday Shankar in 1935 and later performed in the theater.

Her roles in Bollywood films like Cheeni Kum received extensive praise.

Zohra Sehgal was awarded the Padma Vibhushan, India’s second highest civilian award, in 2010 for her work.

Indian PM Narendra Modi led tributes to the actress on Twitter.

“Zohra Sehgal made a mark through her acting, which is admired across generations. Saddened on her demise,” he wrote.

Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan tweeted: “What a journey and what an immensely loveable co-star! Prayers for her blessed soul!!”

At 94, Zohra Sehgal played Amitabh Bachchan’s mother in hit Hindi film, Cheeni Kum, and critics said the chemistry between the two worked very well.

Zohra Sehgal was born in 1912 in the town of Saharanpur in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh.

She stepped into the world of acting by joining left-wing political theater group Indian Peoples’ Theatre Association (IPTA), which dominated the Indian cultural scene in the 1940s.

She was associated with the doyen of Indian theatre, Prithviraj Kapoor, for more than a decade.

In 1962, Zohra Sehgal went to London on a drama scholarship and worked in several English films and popular television productions like My Beautiful Launderette, Tandoori Nights and The Jewel in the Crown.

Zohra Sehgal returned to India in the 1990s at the age of 80 and continued acting until the age of 95.