Lillete Dubey

Lillete Dubey
Dubey in 2012
Born	(1953-09-07) 7 September 1953 Pune, India[1]
Occupation	actress, director
Relatives	Shayan Munshi (son-in-law)

Lillete Dubey (Sindhi: लिलेट दुबे ;لِليِيٽِ دُبي, Hindi: लिलेट दुबे; born 7 September 1953) is an Indian actress who has worked in theatre, television and Bollywood films.^[2]

Personal life and background

Dubey was born in Pune, India, into a Hindu family belonging to the Sindhi community. Her father, Govind Kiswani, was an engineer who worked with Indian Railways, and her mother, Leela, was a gynaecologist.^[3][4]

The widespread belief that Lillete is by birth Christian, or of mixed-race parentage, is totally incorrect. Her father wanted to give her a "modern"-sounding name, and came up with "Lillete" as a faux-French derivation of her mother's name, Leela, with the intended meaning being "little Leela." Lillete never liked her name "from day one." ^[5] 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. Lushin is the wife of Pradeep Dubey, a noted academic.

Lillete married Ravi Dubey on September 12, 1978. Ravi, who joined the Tata Group in 1977, rose to become senior vice-president, corporate communications, by 2004. Ravi also once acted a bit-role in a Bollywood film. In Silsila (1981), he played the role of Amitabh Bachchan's friend in a scene lasting less than two minutes. 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 psychiatrist with an independent practice in Mumbai.

Career

Dubey has appeared in numerous movies, including Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding co-starring Nasiruddin Shah, Kal Ho Naa Ho, which starred Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta, Saif Ali Khan and Jaya Bachchan, Baghban alongside Amitabh Bachchan, Bow Barracks Forever alongside her daughter Neha Dubey, and Housefull alongside Akshay Kumar and Deepika Padukone.

She also played a role in the British film The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, which starred Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, and Bill Nighy.

Lillete Dubey is also an acclaimed theatre director, television and film artist, and was part of the Theatre Action Group in Delhi.^[6]

She has directed a number of plays, most notable being Mahesh Dattani's Dance Like a Man, which is the longest running play in English, having completed 497 shows across the world, including a two-week run on the Broadway.

Filmography

References

External links

• Lillete Dubey at the Internet Movie Database