Born in Mumbai, Leela Naidu was educated in Geneva, Switzerland. The actress was offered many roles but she turned them down due to her studies. However, in 1960, Leela Naidu made her debut with Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s film ‘Anuradha’.
Many actresses in the film industry leave such a mark on the audiences’ hearts that despite years of them being away from the limelight or their deaths, their popularity remains the same. Today, we will tell you about one such actress in Hindi cinema whose beauty was unmatchable, not only because of her brilliant acting but also because of her beauty, filmmakers were eager to cast her in their films.
The name of this actress who could captivate people with her amazing beauty in just one glance was Leela Naidu. She was a superstar in Hindi cinema in the 50s and 60s. In 1954, at just 14, Leela Naidu won the crown of Femina Miss India and garnered much attention. Her name was also included in the list of 10 most beautiful women in the world by Vogue magazine for ten years during that period.
Many legendary actors were impressed by her beauty, one of whom was Raj Kapoor. However, as much attention as got in her professional life, she got as much pain in her personal life.
Born in Mumbai, Leela Naidu was educated in Geneva, Switzerland. The actress was offered many roles but she turned them down due to her studies. However, in 1960, Leela Naidu made her debut with Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s film ‘Anuradha’. This film was not a success but Leela Naidu’s acting was highly praised. Along with this, the makers also made a lot of money from this film because despite being unsuccessful, this film also won the National Award for Best Feature Film.
Leela Naidu’s career includes great films like ‘Yeh Raaste Hain Pyar Ke’, ‘Umeed’, ‘Aabroo’, and ‘The Guru’. Apart from Hindi films, Leela Naidu also worked in some English films. She also used to dub many foreign films in her voice.
Leela Naidu’s professional life was going well and she was climbing the ladder of success, but nothing was going right in her personal life. At the age of just 17, Leela Naidu married Tilak Oberoi, the son of the owner of the Oberoi Hotel chain. Tilak was 16 years older than the actress and was 33 years old. But, their marriage did not last long. It is said that he used to treat Leela Naidu very badly, but the actress never let it be known in front of everyone.
Naidu and Oberoi had twin daughters, Maya and Priya and after their divorce, Oberoi won custody of the girls.
In 1969, Leela Naidu was married for the second time, to Mumbai poet Dom Moraes, but this time too her luck was not good in terms of marriage. Her second marriage also ended in divorce after two decades.
With the breakdown of her second marriage, Leela Naidu also broke down badly and isolated herself from everyone. She started living her life in anonymity. It is said that she drowned herself in drugs.
After her father died in 1991, Leela Naidu fought a legal battle for his land and invested all her savings in it. Soon, all her money was gone and she fell victim to financial difficulties. Because of this, she had to keep tenants in her house so that she could meet the household expenses.
Leela Naidu died in Mumbai in July 2009, due to lung failure after a lengthy bout of influenza, at the age of 69.
