Lillete Dubey

Lillete Dubey (born 7 September 1953) is an Indian stage and film actress and a theatre Director. She has worked in national and international theatre, television and films, (Hindi and English). Dubey began her career with Barry John in Delhi and was the founding member of his group -Theatre Action Group (TAG) in 1973 . In 1991 she set up her own Theatre Company- The Primetime Theatre Company.[3][4][5]

Lillete Dubey
Lillete Dubey at the premiere of The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel in 2015
Born	Lillete Keswani[1] 7 September 1953[2] Pune, Bombay State, India[2]
Occupation	Actress, director
Spouse(s)	Ravi Dubey ​ ​ (m. 1978; died 2015)​
Children	Neha Dubey Ira Dubey
Relatives	Lushin Dubey (sister)

Ms. Dubey is best known for her acclaimed performances in films like Zubeida, Monsoon Wedding (Winner Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival) Baghban, Kal Ho Na Ho, My Brother Nikhil, Delhi in a Day, Bow Barracks Forever (Best Actress Filma Madrid International Film Festival), 3 Days to Go (Best Actress Simon Sabela Awards, KZN South Africa), The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (BAFTA- Best Ensemble Cast) and The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, and Sonata.[6][7]

In theater, she is known for her work like Adhe Adhure (Best Actress Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards) and ’Dance Like a Man’[8][9]

Early life

Ms Dubey was born in Pune to Sindhi Hindu parents.[10] Her father, Gobind Keswani, was an engineer with the Indian Railways, and her mother, Lila Keswani, was a gynaecologist from Lady Harding who later worked with the Indian Army.[1][2][11] After Ms Dubey's birth the family moved to Bikaner and later to Lucknow where she studied at Loretto Convent  and then went to Rustom Boarding school in Pune. After Rustoms, she came to Delhi and studied at Carmel Convent.

.[1][2] When she was in Class IX, the family moved back to Pune and she joined St. Mary's (Pune), where she first started acting. Her earliest role was that of Cecily in The Importance of Being Earnest. As she was good at academics, her parents were keen on her pursuing Science, however, Ms Dubey wanted to study Arts. After a great deal of persuasion she was allowed to study English literature at Lady Shri Ram College (LSR). It was during this period that she met her husband Ravi Dubey who was doing his M.A in Economics from the Delhi School of Economics. She completed her M.A in English from LSR and her second master's degree in mass communications from IIMC. She married Ravi Dubey on 12 September 1978.[12][13]

Personal life & Family

Lillete's husband Ravi Dubey was the youngest-ever General Manager of the Taj Mansingh hotel and rose to be the Senior Vice President of Corporate Communications at the Tata Group before he quit in 2004. He died of pancreatic cancer in 2015.[14]

The couple have two daughters, Neha and Ira, both of whom have played a variety of small and supporting roles in theatre, film and television. Additionally, Neha is a psychotherapist with an independent practice in Mumbai.

Lillete is the eldest of three siblings. She has a sister, Lushin, (named after Ilyushin, a Russian aircraft), and a brother, Patanjali, named in honour of the ancient rishi who compiled the Yoga Sutras. He is the founder of the Lemon Tree hotel group.[2] Lushin is the wife of Pradeep Dubey, a noted academic.

Career

Films

Ms Dubey's entry into films was quite by chance when her husband was posted to Mumbai in 1995, and she has often called herself an 'accidental film actress’. She debuted with the film Love You Hamesha starring Akshay Khanna and Sonali Bendre in 1999. The movie was directed by Kailash Surendranath. After that, she played a supporting character in Bawandar, directed by Jag Mundhra and starring Nandita Das, in 2000. It was based on the story of a rape victim, Bhanwari Devi, from Rajasthan.[15] Her career breakthrough was in 2001 when she essayed the role of Aunty Rose in Shyam Benegal's classic Zubeida and won many hearts and next as Shabana, the mother of the female protagonist Sakeena (played by Amisha Patel) in the movie Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. Her second hit, Monsoon Wedding, came out later in the same year and became yet another milestone in her film career.[16] Divya Unny from Open (Indian magazine) said,

"She acted in her first film Zubeidaa (2001) at the age of 47 which would have been considered a late start for an actor. Even as an independent actor, Dubey created a niche. She has defied expectations many times on screen. She was the only actress her age who could carry off smoking a cigarette in a shiny blouse and petticoat, with rollers in her hair, in Monsoon Wedding (2001)."[17]

The following year, in 2002, she again portrayed the role of one of the lead characters’ mother in the movie Om Jai Jagadish, directed by Anupam Kher. Her on-screen daughter was Urmila Matondkar. Another of her memorable roles was that of ‘Shanti Patel’, the wife of Paresh Rawal in Baghban (2003).[18]

The role that gained a lot of attention was that of Jaswinder "Jazz" Kapoor in Kal Ho Naa Ho, in 2003. She played Jazz, an older female character that is fierce, unapologetic, and in touch with her sexuality.[19] In 2004 she played the role of Preity Zinta's reel mother in the movie Lakshya. The film was directed by Farhan Akhtar and starred Hrithik Roshan as the male lead. In the same year, she also worked in Anjan Dutt's Bow Barracks Forever, a film that revolved around the troubles faced by the Anglo-Indian people to keep up their lifestyle, in the post-independence era and which won her the Best Actress award at the Madrid International Film Festival.[16]

Dubey was reported to be joining the cast of Qubool Hai 2 that is to be released in 2021.[20]

Theatre

Dubey has been acting for over 40 years, and  has played the lead in over 60 productions ranging from Shakespeare, Greek Tragedy, Brecht, Musical Comedies, Farce, Contemporary Drama, Absurd Theatre, to Contemporary Drama, including Ibsen, Tennessee Williams, Arthur Miller, Pinter, Dario Fo, Edward Albee, and Indian playwrights like Vijay Tendulkar, Partap Sharma, Mahesh Dattani, Girish Karnad, Mahesh Elkunchwar.[21][22]

Television

Dubey has worked television

• Hum Log and[23]
• Newsline.[24]

Lillete has also hosted her own talk show for TIMES NOW called ‘By Invitation Only.[25]

Web Series

Lillete worked on a web series for Zee5, Akoori[26] and a long short film  ‘Seasons Greetings’ with Celina Jaitley.[27] Her short film works include Sonata & Purana Pyaar.[28]

Curation and Jury

• Jury at Osian's Cinefan Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema[29]
• Theater for Curator for Serendipity Arts Festival[30]
• Jury for Mahindra Excellence in Theatre awards (META)[31]
• The RedInk Awards[32]

Filmography

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1997	Kabhie Kabhie		TV series
1999	Love You Hamesha
2000	Bawandar (English: Sandstorm)	Socialite
2001	Zubeidaa	Rose Davenport
2001	Gadar: Ek Prem Katha	Shabana
2001	Monsoon Wedding	Pimmi Verma
2002	Om Jai Jagadish	Neetu's mom
2002	Kitne Door... Kitne Paas
2003	Pinjar	Tara- Puro's mother
2003	Johnny
2003	Chalte Chalte	Anna Mausi (Priya's aunt)
2003	Baghban	Shanti Patel
2003	Kal Ho Naa Ho	Jaswinder "Jazz" Kapoor
2004	Lakshya	Mrs. Dutta, Romila's mother
2004	Vanity Fair	Ms. Green	credited as Lillette Dubey
2004	Morning Raga	Mrs. Kapoor
2004	Sau Jhooth Ek Sach	Moushami Pradhan
2004	Bow Barracks Forever	Emily Lobo
2005	My Brother…Nikhil	Anita Rosario Kapoor
2005	Main Aisa Hi Hoon	Ritu
2005	Dosti: Friends Forever	Kiran Thapar
2006	Fanaa	Helen (Zooni's Instructor)
2006	Corporate	Devyani Bakshi
2006	Aap Ki Khatir	Betty A. Khanna
2007	My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves	Bharucha (Movie Director)
2007	Har Pal
2008	Saas Bahu Aur Sensex	Anita B. Jethmalani
2008	Fauj Mein Mauj
2009	Phoonk	Dr. Seema Walke
2009	Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors	Santosh 'Toshi'
2009	Mumbai Calling	Amar's Mother	TV Series (season 1 episode 4 Boy to Man)
2010	Bollywood Beats	Jyoti
2010	I Am 24
2010	Fun in the Army
2010	Pankh	Mary D'Cunha
2010	Housefull	Zulekha Bano
2010	Break Ke Baad	Pammi J. Gulati
2011	Always Kabhi Kabhi	Ms Das
2012	Na Jaane Kabse	Monika
2012	Delhi in a Day	Kalpana
2012	The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel	Mrs. Kapoor	British film
2012	I M 24
2012	Shobhna's Seven Nights	Malishka
2012	Heroine	Mrs. Arora
2013	Chashme Baddoor	Ms Josephine
2013	Dabba (The Lunchbox)	Ila's mother
2014	One by Two	Samara Patel's mother
2014	Dr. Cabbie	Nellie	Canadian film
2014	Bhaiyyaji Superhit		delayed
2015	The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel	Mrs. Kapoor
2015	A Million Rivers	Roop
2016	Aksar 2
2017	Sonata
2019	3 Days to Go	Matriarch Lakshmi Isaac	South African Film
2020	Unpaused	Archna
TBA	Desi Magic	Mrs. Saxena
TBA	Tadka	Samantha
2021	Blind	TBA	Filming[33]

Short films

Year	Title	Role	Language	Notes
2018	Purana Pyaar	Mrs. Sharma	Hindi	Finalist for Filmfare Short Film Awards[34][35]

Television

Year	Show	Channel	Role	Notes
1997	Idhar Udhar	DD National	Shobhna	Episode 16
	Indian Summers	Channel 4	Roshana Dalal	British series
2017	Adhe Adhure	Hotstar	Savitri	Teleplay Also Director Hotstar Original Series
	Dance Like A Man		Ratna
2018	Love Handles (Ep05 - #PuranaPyaar)	Gorilla Shorts - YouTube	Mrs. Sharma	Romantic Comedy Web Series
2018	Akoori (web series)	Zee5	Rita Shah	Comedy Web Series
2019	Queen (web series)	MX Player	Interviewer

References

1. "Lillete's world". The Hindu (Metro Plus). 16 December 2011.
2. "Lillete Dubey: The drama of life". The Times of India (Delhi Times). 26 May 2002.
3. "Profiles : Snapping up life". The Hindu (Metro Plus). 7 July 2008.
4. "Gauhar- Produced by The Primetime Theatre Co. and directed by Lillette Dubey". The Hindu. 25 July 2019. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
5. "Lillete Dubey's theatre company, Primetime Theatre Co., celebrates 25 years... : www.MumbaiTheatreGuide.com". www.mumbaitheatreguide.com. Retrieved 30 May 2020.
6. "PNC's Bow Barracks Forever wins Best Actress at FilmaMadrid International Film Festival 2008 « Pritish Nandy Communications Ltd. |". pritishnandycom.com. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
7. "PressReader.com - Your favorite newspapers and magazines". www.pressreader.com. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
8. "A feast of theatre at Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards". Zee News. 1 March 2012. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
9. Akundi, Sweta (6 August 2019). "'Dance Like a Man' by Lillette Dubey: Dance, drama and relationships". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
10. All the World is a Stage
11. "I am over-qualified for this medium". The Indian Express. 1 October 1999. Archived from the original on 20 December 2013.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
12. May 26, TNN |; 2002; Ist, 01:04. "Lillete Dubey: The drama of life | undefined News - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 10 September 2020.CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
13. "Curators | Serendipity Arts Festival". Serendipity. Retrieved 10 September 2020.
14. "Youngest-ever GM of Taj Mansingh dies at 60". The Times of India. 13 May 2015.
15. "Lillete's life goals". www.telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
16. "Lillete Dubey - Movies, Biography, News, Age & Photos". BookMyShow. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
17. "Lillete Dubey: 'It's a never-ending trip'". Open The Magazine. 17 February 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2020.
18. Rituparnasandilya (17 June 2017). "Where are the other fathers in BAGHBAN?". Rituparna Roy. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
19. Sharma, Anshika (28 November 2016). "An Ode to the Women of Kal Ho Naa Ho, and Why Bollywood Needs More Such Characters". www.vagabomb.com. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
20. "Lillete Dubey Joins The Cast Of Qubool Hai 2.0, Also Starring Karan Singh Grover And Surbhi Jyoti". ZEE5 News. 3 December 2020. Retrieved 16 December 2020.
21. "Curators | Serendipity Arts Festival". Serendipity. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
22. Vaidya, Ketan (11 June 2019). "Indian theatre remembers its Renaissance man, Girish Karnad". DNA India. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
23. "The Tribune - Magazine section - Saturday Extra". www.tribuneindia.com. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
24. "Lillete Dubey, Joy Sengupta stage play, gear up for production on Devika Rani - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
25. Chowdhury, Shalinee (23 January 2006). "'I'm a greedy actor always on the lookout for an interesting role'". DNA India. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
26. Raman, Sruthi Ganapathy. "ZEE5 comedy 'Akoori' shows what a dysfunctional family is really like, says director Harsh Dedhia". Scroll.in. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
27. "'Season's Greetings' Is An Ode To Freedom Of Love And Choices". www.outlookindia.com/. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
28. "Lillete Dubey : Biography, wiki, age, family, husband, net worth, movies". Cine Talkers. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
29. "OSIAN's Cinefan Film Fest opens to a star-studded reception!". Zee News. 29 July 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
30. "Curators | Serendipity Arts Festival". Serendipity. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
31. "Jury - Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards". Jury - Mahindra Excellence in Theatre Awards. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
32. Rathod, Pranav. "JURY ROUND OF THE REDINK AWARDS ENDS WITH THE SELECTION OF 32 AWARD WINNERS". MumbaiPressclub. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
33. "Sonam Kapoor Ahujas Blind starts filming". Outlook India. 28 December 2020. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
34. "Purana Pyaar |Mohan Agashe|Lillete Dubey|Award Winning Short Film |Love Handles Web Series". Gorilla Shorts on YouTube. 30 May 2018.
35. "BEST DRAMA SHORT FILMS". Filmfare. Retrieved 17 March 2019.

External links

• Lillete Dubey at IMDb
• Ravi Dubey at IMDb