The first Indian celeb to own a Rolls Royce was an actress who was an immigrant
Rolls Royce cars are considered the ultimate epitome of royalty and luxury. Due to the high price and exclusivity of these cars, not everyone can purchase one and owning one marks you out as an elite. So it is a surprise that one of the first owners of a Rolls Royce from India was a commoner, an immigrant who rose to be one of the highest paid actresses in Bollywood
1. Bollywood celebs who own Rolls Royce
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Today, several Bollywood celebs own a Rolls Royce car, most notably superstars like Shah Rukh Khan, Hrithik Roshan, and Sanjay Dutt. While Priyanka Chopra is the only actress in the list with a Rolls Royce in her garage
2. First Indian celeb to own Rolls Royce
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But decades before them, and even before Mukesh Ambani had bought one, an actress from Bollywood’s golden age was the proud owner of a Rolls Royce. This was Nadira, who reportedly had one of these luxury cars as early as the 1950s
3. Nadira’s humble beginnings
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Born Florence Ezekiel in Baghdad to a Baghdadi Jewish family, Nadira and her family immigrated to India in the late-1930s, possibly during World War II. In 1943, she began working at the age of 11, was with the film Mauj. The actress was paid Rs 1200 for the film
4. When Nadira became a Bollywood star
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Nadira’s breakthrough as an actress was in 1952 with Mehboob Khan’s Aan, in which she played a Rajput princess. She later found fame playing temptresses and vamps in various successful films, most notably in Raj Kapoor’s Shree 420
5. How Nadira became one of Bollywood’s top actresses
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During the late-1950s and early-1960s, she was the most sought after actress in India. During this period, she starred in superhit films such as Dil Apna Aur Preet Parai and Chhoti Chhoti Baatein
6. How Nadira moved to supporting roles
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From the 1970s, she began doing supporting roles, doing films like Pakeezah, Julie, Saagar, among others. Her last film appearance was in a cameo in Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai-starrer Josh in 2000. She passed away in 2006 at the age of 73
