Shifting gears: Urmila Matondkar from Masoom to Karzz

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February 13, 2010 (Sampurn Wire): Urmila Matondkar is the empress of Bollywood in her own right. Her unbeatable charm gives her an edge over all the other actress of her time. She made her first camera appearance at the age of six with the film Kalyug and later with Shekhar Kapoor’s film Masoom, she became one of the most popular child artists.

Having started moderately in Bollywood as a young actress, she chose to go bold and make her presence felt in the industry. In association with RGV, she scaled several levels in accomplishing stardom. She pulled off all those sleazy dance moves with invincible grace and showing her acting prowess in offbeat films like Pinjar and Tehzeeb proving there is much more to her than just sex appeal.

Who’s that Rangeela girl!

Urmila made her film debut as an actress with the film ‘Bade Ghar ki Beti’ and then came Chamatkar, with Shahrukh Khan, where she was nothing more than wallpaper. The real chamatkar happened with the musical film ‘Rangeela’ by RGV in 1995 which propelled her into the big league. Urmila had finally arrived, and how! Tanha tanha on the beach with Jackie Shroff made her an overnight celebrity. Giving a new dimension to a jog on beach Urmila made the who’s who of Bollywood sitting up and singing who’s that girl!

Daud the huntress is coming!

Urmila packed her bags and hit the road with Sanju Baba in the film Daud, both of them are on a run from gangsters and police. All through their cross country run Urmila is recklessly dressed down to casuals. Thanks to the fantasy song sequences, Urmila pretty much strikes a balance between her dull drab look and the super hot feline avatar. In the song Zehreela Zehreela Pyar covered in skimpy rags she exudes raw sexual energy, she slithers through the jungle with an ease that comes naturally to a feline creature. Definitely a cavewoman on hunt for her man!

Aflatoon Glam Doll

Dressed to a T, she starred with Khiladi Akshay Kumar in the comedy cum thriller film Aflatoon. She was just a step away from getting stereotyped as a glam-doll when she did this film. She portrayed the character of a bubbly rich girl Pooja in the film, opposite to what she has been doing previously. She beautifully carried the cuteness of Pooja, thus with this film she added another shade to her onscreen image.

Simply Satya

Urmila shocked the industry by her portrayal of a simple homely middleclass maharashtrian in the film Satya. RGV and Urmila combination once again did wonders at the box-office. A shy girl from the chawwals of Mumbai who aspires to be a singer and falls in love with a neighborhood gangster… The film went on to become a cult gangster classic and thereafter many others followed the suit, but none could capture the essence of Satya or Urmila’s simplicity. Tu mere pas bhi hai shows Urmila in art house simplicity and gives a breezy feel to this serious film.

Folk in China Gate

Nerdy but Khoobsurat?

After winning many laurels in the year 1999 Urmila apparently just let go… Her boring jawani in Khoobsurat convinced us that she is indeed a girl who has low-esteemed. So horribly nerdy she looked that even the gentlemanly Sanju baba could not refrain from commenting she could potentially kill a cat by crossing paths with her! Wrongly assembled Shivani err… Urmila reminded us of her younger days: Bade Ghar ki Beti days, and that thought is definitely not pretty.

Pehchan Kaun? Urmila!

In 1999 Kaun was an inventively minimalist RGV’s creation, using only one set and a cast of three actors RGV pulled off a never- heard-before thing of having the actress in one costume. The only costume change that occurs is in the film’s final scene when Matondkar reappears the following morning. The thriller film completely rode on the performance of its actors and Urmila certainly walks away with all the accolades.

Stardust Mast

The same year saw the launch of the actor Aftab Shivdasani with Urmila in Mast, where Urmila was his fantasy poster girl who literally popped out of the poster and landed in his arms. There was a buzz that she looked older than Aftab in the film, but the combination of her timeless beauty and energy gelled with the newbie Aftab so well in the song Ruki Ruki Si Zindagi… which zipped everyone’s lips.

Innocent in Jungle

Jungle was essentially a tame thing for Urmila; she played a victim and carried her innocent vulnerability perfectly. Looking as if she has been scrubbed clean even in the midst of the jungle, Urmila looked pristine in white in do pyar karne wale. She convincingly expressed the fear and apprehension of being abducted. Though the film did not do very well, but Fardeen and Urmila’ on-screen pairing looked great.

Femme Fatale Pyar Tune Kya Kiya

Nobody could have portrayed the deranged stalker better than Urmila, an obsessive lover in another RGV film Pyar Tune Kya Kiya. On the heels of her Hollywood doppelganger Glenn Close, Urmila too was showcased in a fresh and sassy avatar. With her hair cropped to shoulders she was the new it girl. Her new ritzy hairdo and slinky clothes saw knock offs in the most popular street shops to high end fashion boutiques.

Seducing Lajja

Rajkumar Santoshi perhaps in an attempt to repeat Chhamma Chhamma history roped in Urmila for an item song Aayeeyeh Aaajaayeeyeh… The naughty mate calling though was not as big a hit as Chhamma Chhamma, but still the peppy number found its fans. Urmila as usual was a delightful splash of glamour in the grim drama of Lajja, once again she added pleasant delight to Santoshi’s film.

Urmila Ki AAG

When the historic Sholay came to life again through RGV, he saw to it that his very own sensuous doll Urmila gets to be in the league of the cabaret queen Helen. Immortalizing her dance moves with the Mehbooba…number, Helen could have not found a better person to relive her character. With her shimmering moves Urmila ignited the same magic, and set the screen on fire. Though the film might have been thrashed by the critics, but Urmila’s tribal oomph once again succeeded in captivating the onlookers.

Dominatrix Karzz

Tan Tananan Tandoori Nights… Urmila’s stunning seduction comes to kitchen basics with Himesh Reshammiya, and together they make Tandoori Nights fun. Looking dazzling young and fresh she gave the tweenies a run for their money. Stepping effortlessly in the shoes of Simi she gracefully added a dash of dominatrix glamour to the character of Kamini.

-Deepa Mishra / Sampurn Wire