Tabassum

Biography

Tabassum (born Kiran Bala Sachdev (later Govil); 9 July 1944 – 18 November 2022), was an Indian actress, talk show host, and YouTuber, who started her career as child actor Baby Tabassum in 1947. She later had a television career as the host of the first TV talk show on Indian television, Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan. It ran on National broadcaster Doordarshan from 1972 to 1993, wherein she interviewed film and TV personalities.

Tabassum was born in Mumbai, then known as Bombay, in 1944 to Ayodhyanath Sachdev, an Indian freedom fighter, and Asghari Begum, a freedom fighter, journalist, and author. She explained how she was named in an interview in 2014:

My father named me 'Tabassum', keeping my mother's religious sentiments in mind. My mother kept my name 'Kiran Bala', keeping my father's religious sentiments in mind. My name on all official documents was 'Kiran Bala Sachdev'. After marriage, it became 'Kiran Bala Govil'. 'Tabassum' is my screen name; it means muskhurahat (smile).

Tabassum made her film debut as a child actor with Nargis (1947) followed by Mera Suhaag (1947), Manjhdhar (1947), and Bari Behen (1949). Later in Deedar (1951), directed by Nitin Bose, she played the childhood role of Nargis; the hit song Bachpan Ke Din Bhula Na Dena sung by Lata Mangeshkar and Shamshad Begum was picturized on her.  Also, in the next year, she appeared in another important film Baiju Bawra (1952) directed by Vijay Bhatt, where she appeared in the childhood role of Meena Kumari. She also worked in the popular film Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon starring Joy Mukherjee and Asha Parekh. She also starred in the beautiful song 'Aji qibla mohtarma'. After a gap, she reentered films in adult roles, working as a character actress.