Parveen Sultana Wali Mohammad Khanji Babi (pronounced [ˈpəɾ.ʋin bɑ.bi]; 4 April 1954 – 20 January 2005) was an Indian actress and model who worked in Hindi films.

[15] Babi's modelling career began in 1971 when she was recruited by Jeannie Naoroji for a fashion show at Calico Dome.

Unknown to Sahu, Ishara announced that Babi would make her debut in his film Charitra (1973), opposite cricketer Salim Durrani.

Her character was noted for engaging in premarital sex and drinking alcohol, defying societal norms for Indian woman, and helped establish Babi's westernised image.

[24] With her boyfriend at the time, Kabir Bedi, working in European cinema, Babi aspired to do the same, and she was cast in the Italian film La tigre è ancora viva: Sandokan alla riscossa!

[25] Chopra also considered Babi and Smita Patil for Silsila (1981), but they were ultimately replaced by Rekha and Jaya Bachchan, respectively.

[32][33][34] She shared the screen with Aman in Mahaan (1983) and Ashanti (1982)—the latter inspired by the American television series Charlie's Angels, with Shabana Azmi completing the trio.

She generally would appear on the front page of every film magazine, including Filmfare, The Stardust and Bombay Dyeing.

[21][35] She was also the first Bollywood actress to appear on the front page of Time magazine in July 1976, for which she made history; the cover has since become iconic.

[36][37] She never shied away from portraying roles of women having a live-in relationship with men and consuming alcohol openly, both of which were taboo in those times.

The fact that Babi was paired with Amitabh Bachchan in eight films during the peak of the Big B mania attests to her stature and star power.

[38] Babi later "disappeared" from the film scene in 1983, informing nobody of her whereabouts, which allowed for exaggerated rumours and pompous claims that she might be "under the control" of figures in the "underworld".

[40] After withdrawing from show business, she took up music, piano, painting, architecture, literature, writing, cultural and archaeological study, politics, photography, sculpture, and human-rights issues.

[41] Born into a Muslim family, Babi was influenced by several religions growing up, including Islam, Hinduism and Christianity.

[42] Throughout her life, Babi emphasized that spirituality, for her, was rooted in being a good human being and adhering to positive principles rather than strict religious practices.

She often questioned certain religious norms, such as dietary restrictions, and believed that morality and kindness were more important than rigid adherence to dogma.

[44] Around 1969, Babi became engaged to her distant cousin from Pakistan, Jamil Khan, before it was ended by her mother during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, leaving her devastated.

[b][46] In 1972, Babi dated Neville Damania, the bassist of the band Purple Flowers, until she relocated to Bombay to pursue a career in the film industry.

[59][60] After a film shoot in 1979, Bhatt, Jamal and her secretary, Ved Sharma, witnessed Babi sitting in the corner of her bedroom, holding a knife.

[61] On 30 July 1983, Babi left India and travelled to various countries for a spiritual journey with U. G. Krishnamurti and her friend Valentine and spent some of the time in California and Houston.

She was rumoured to have been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, although she regularly denied this, stating that her being labelled as such was a conspiracy by the film industry and the media to malign her image and make her appear insane, so that they could cover up their crimes.

[62] On 7 April 1984, Babi was suspected at John F. Kennedy International Airport after she failed to submit her identification papepapers, the authorities handcuffed her and kept her in a general ward with thirty other mentally disturbed patients.

[68][69] In 2002, she again hit the headlines when she filed an affidavit in a special court hearing of the 1993 serial bomb blasts case, claiming that she had gathered clinching evidence against actor Sanjay Dutt showing his involvement in the case, but she did not turn up in court after being summoned, saying that she was afraid of being killed.

Babi was found dead on 22 January 2005 after her residential society secretary alerted the police that she had not collected groceries and newspapers from her doorstep for three days.

It is possible that she was unable to walk in her last days due to a gangrenous foot and required the use of a wheelchair to move around her flat.

[76] Following her death, chaos erupted when various distant relatives filed petitions with the high court regarding the will of her property which had been lying in the locker of a Junagadh bank, executed jointly by actor and friend Murad Khan Babi.

[77][78] Five years later, due to a shortage of land space for burials, Babi's grave along with other luminary Bollywood celebrities, such as Mohammed Rafi, Madhubala, Sahir Ludhianvi, Talat Mahmood, Naushad Ali, who were interred at Santa Cruz Muslim Cemetery, were exhumed and their remains were relocated to a new resting place.

[87] Writing for Firstpost, Subhash K. Jha noted, "With her good looks, perk, poise, and sex appeal, the sky was the limit for Parveen Babi.

"[89] India Today wrote, "Parveen Babi with her chiselled looks, well-sculpted body and anglicised accents donned the mantle of archetypal Indian heroine and imparted to the female prima donna of Bollywood her characteristic mannerisms forever.

[101] Bhatt wrote and produced Woh Lamhe (2006) directed by his nephew Mohit Suri, based on his recollection and interpretation of his relationship with Babi and without any inputs from her.