Farrukh Jaffar was born in Jaunpur in 1933 and had moved to Lucknow at the age of 16 when she married the freedom fighter and journalist Syed Muhammad Jaffar, also former MLC and ex-UP Congress chief.
The 88 year old, always being fond of cinema, had once said how she would see films back to back in theatres, sometimes even requesting her male relatives to accompany her to a film show. Nargis and Dilip Kumar were her favourite actors.
Later in 1963, she became the first woman announcer of Vividh Bharti even before making an impressive name for herself in the Indian film industry.
Jaffarâs co-actors, directors mourned the loss of the iconic actress who had become the oldest actress to have won a Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress this year, for her performance as Fatto Begum in the film Gulabo Sitabo opposite Amitabh Bachchan.
Filmmaker Muzaffar Ali, whose film Umrao Jaan had marked Farrukh Jaffarâs debut in acting said of her, âUmme Farwa, as her real name was, was the name she wanted to appear in the credit titles of Umrao Jaan. For all of us in the film, she was Farrukh khala. My friend Taqi Hasan of Salempur would tease her with this name and harmless Awadhi digs.”
“She was the behind-the-screen happening of the film and extended her self for everything the film demanded â_from nazar niyaz to coaching people in the ways of belonging to its culture. She was in many of my short films and most recently Jaanisaar.”
“Such people are immortal as they create moments in which we all live and remember them by. She was an important part of my creative work and she would always add immeasurable value to it. I literally have no words to describe this loss, a loss for Lucknow, a loss to our language and culture.â
Family sources said that the actor was born in Chakesar village in Shahganj area of Jaunpur district and she came to Lucknow after finishing her initial studies. She had worked in films like Peepli Live, Swades, Sultan and Secret Superstar.