The Curious Case of 70s Saira Bano

Today, yesteryear’s diva Saira Bano is a symbol of commitment, ideal wife and someone her admirers look upto and adore for attending to her ailing husband. But one has been curious about her unbelievable transformation in the 70s, just a curious rewind to that phase. 

Saira returned from London and joined Bollywood at 16 and became a top list star with Junglee(1961), throughout the 60s she was typecast as the chirpy, bubbly, innocent little barbie doll mostly clad in countryside frocks or slacks. She was the stereotyped Bollywood girl next door, sexy? Nah never. Even an underwater swimming sequence and the bathtub songs didn’t drag her into the sex symbol category, the sweet little chulbuli effervescent girl image stuck. 

Come 1970 and everything changed. Now she was already mrs Dilip Kumar, had just battled a mysteriously guarded illness and emerged survivor, a brief ten month sabbatical over she came back with Purab Aur Paschim(1970) shedding inhibitions and clothes. She defended that the role demanded it as she played a foreign bred blonde so the short skirts were mandatory. Good! But the shorts got shorter and 70s saw a complete transformation in Saira who changed from the little baby to a saucy seductress. 

In the 70s Saira went on a signing spree and what stayed common in all her movies except Chaitali(1975) were the revealing costumes and generous display of anatomy. There was a joke that her neckline and hemline would soon meet. In a Star and Style interview (1973) Saira confidently confessed that she loved hot pants and could wear them in all her movies. There were eyebrows raised as to how the thespian “allowed” his dutiful Begum to expose so much, socially they looked very much in love and Saira’s onscreen sex drive didn’t affect their domesticity. 

It is alleged Saira’s towel clad poster caused a traffic jam in Bombay in 1972, she defended saying she was supposed to seduce Ranjeet in that song. On the posters of Nehle Pe Dehla(1976) it’s neither Sunil Dutt nor Saira who found any place, only Saira’s sexy legs were posted suggestively to attract audience! She screamed sexual liberation wearing cleavage exposing tops and almost invisible shorts and frilled skirts in movies like Jwar Bhata(1973), Pocketmaar(1973), Resham Ki Dori(1974), International Crook(1974), Saazish(1975), all opposite brawny Dharmender. 

Her no holds barred bare all dare all look in Amitabh’s Hera Pheri(1976) shocked the audiences, so did her micro ghaghara and popping out choli in Bairaag(1976) or Mera Vachan Geeta Ki Kasam(1977). For the 70s this was bold, daring and sending shock waves for viewers who’d earlier witnessed a more docile, shy, sweet as sugar candy Saira in the 60s, this was an untamed, sexually aggressive, bolder and hotter version. 

Had she quit Bollywood after marriage one may have not witnessed this metamorphosed 70s version, it’s quite surprising how she transformed after a decade long career in films and also found warm welcome by the film makers who lapped up this completely contrasting version of the once naive and “lost in the woods” damsel. It’s like two different persons altogether one the 60s baby doll and the other 70s sex kitten.