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{{for|Khurshid singer-actress|Khursheed Bano}}
{{Use Pakistani English|date=December 2019}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2016}}
'''Begum Khurshid Mirza''' ([[Urdu]]: ''' بیگم خورشید مرزا ''' ), also known by her screen name in India as '''Renuka Devi''' (1918 – 1989), was a [[Pakistan Television Corporation|Pakistani television]] actress in Pakistan and before that - she was a film actress in India in the [[Partition of India|pre-partition era]].

==Early life==
Begum Khurshid Mirza was born as Khurshid Jehan to [[Sheikh Abdullah (educationalist)]] and Waheed Jahan Begum, the founders of [[Women's College, Aligarh]], where she received her education. Her father was a practising lawyer and philanthropist who was keen to bring education and enlightenment to Muslim women. Her father was an open-minded and liberal man. Khurshid grew up in [[Aligarh]] and got married in 1934 to a police officer Akbar Mirza.<ref name=telegraph/><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4f04CGfXLFQ Slides of Begum Khurshid Mirza's bio-data on YouTube] Uploaded 10 October 2010, Retrieved 24 December 2019</ref><ref name=TFT/>

==Film career==
Khurshid Mirza left the local world of [[Aligarh]] town to pursue a film career in [[Bombay]]. Mostly associated with [[Bombay Talkies]], she acted in few of their films including ''Bhakti (1939)'', ''Badi Didi (1939)'', ''[[Jeevan Prabhat]] (1937)'', ''[[Bhabhi (1938 film)|Bhabhi]] (1938)'' and ''Naya Sansar (1941)'', under the screen name '''Renuka Devi'''. In the [[Indian film industry]], she played leading roles in box-office hits ''[[Sahara (1943 Hindi film)|Sahara]]'' (1943), ''Ghulami'' (1945) and ''Samrat Chandragupta (1945)''. Besides acting, she also used to sing for her films.<ref name=cineplot/>

She announced her retirement from the Indian film industry in February 1944.

==Television career==
After the [[partition of India]], she migrated to [[Pakistan]]. Several years later, sometimes after 1964, when [[Pakistan Television Corporation]] began its broadcast transmission and its TV drama serials started earning household fame, there was a need for professionals to train the young media crew. [[Aslam Azhar]], a pioneer of PTV, himself encouraged her to perform for television, considering her experience in this field.<ref name=TFT/> Then Begum Khurshid Mirza started her acting career in Pakistan using her real name.<ref name=cineplot/> It was a [[Haseena Moin]]'s serial, entitled ''Kiran Kahani'' (1972), which rediscovered Khurshid Mirza as an actress. Her performance gained her rave reviews, even though she said in a later interview that it was slightly off-key. The next serial she worked in was ''Zer Zabar Pesh'', also written by [[Haseena Moin]]. Her performance was regarded by many as one of the finest acting performances in that role, and this set the tone for the rest of her acting career.

She remained a character actress for [[Pakistan Television Corporation|PTV]], [[Karachi]] television centre and had nearly a dozen of popular TV drama series to her credit, including ''Parchhain'' (1976), ''[[Uncle Urfi]]'' (1972) and a special play ''Massi Sherbate'' written by [[Fatima Surayya Bajia]]. She retired in 1985, with her last performance coming in PTV drama series ''Ana'' (1985). After her retirement, she moved to [[Lahore]] permanently to be with her daughters and their children.

==Literature==
Begum Khurshid Mirza penned her autobiography in 1982,<ref name=cineplot/> which discussed the life of a literary person in [[British India]], journalism education and work in [[Lucknow]], married life, [[Indian film industry]], migration to [[Pakistan]], adjusting to [[Karachi]], and working on [[Pakistani television]].<ref name=cineplot>[http://cineplot.com/renuka-devi/ Renuka Devi (real name Begum Khurshid Mirza) Profile on Cineplot.com website] Published 8 November 2009, Retrieved 24 December 2019</ref>
The autobiography originally appeared in the Pakistani monthly magazine [[Herald (Pakistan)|Herald]] as a nine-part serial, from August 1982 to April 1983, under the title ''The Uprooted Sappling''. Later, the collection was compiled in 2005 as a book under the title ''A woman of substance:
the memoirs of Begum Khurshid Mirza''.<ref>{{cite journal |jstor=4417552 |title=A Transformation of a Begum |volume=40 |pages=5397–5399|last1=Aleaz |first1=Bonita |journal=Economic and Political Weekly |year=2005 |issue=51 }} Retrieved 24 December 2019</ref><ref name=telegraph/><ref name=goodreads/>

==Social works==
After migration to Pakistan, Khurshid Mirza worked for the ''[[All Pakistan Women's Association|All Pakistan Women's Association (APWA)]]'' as a volunteer helping destitute women.<ref name=telegraph>{{cite news| url=http://www.telegraphindia.com/1050508/asp/look/story_4705180.asp | location=Calcutta, India |newspaper=The Telegraph (Indian newspaper)|title=Breaking the mould: Bold & Beautiful: Begum Khurshid Mirza in her prime |date=8 May 2005|access-date=24 December 2019}}</ref><ref name=Dawn/> When her husband was transferred to [[Quetta]], she took charge of an APWA centre for healthcare in a rural area called ''Ismail Killi''. She had also aired programmes on women's issues on radio.<ref name=telegraph/>

==Awards==
She was awarded the [[Pride of Performance]] by the [[President of Pakistan]] in 1984.<ref name=TFT/>

==PTV drama series==
* Kiran Kahani (1972)
* Zer Zabar Pesh (1973)
* [[Uncle Urfi]] (1972)<ref>[https://pakistaniat.com/2011/01/15/ptv-uncle-urfi/ Uncle Urfi: A PTV Blockbuster] All Things Pakistan website, Published 15 January 2011, Retrieved 24 December 2019</ref>
* [[Parchhaiyan (PTV Home)|Parchhaiyan]] (1976)
* Rumi
* Dhund
* Choti Choti Baatein
* Shama
* Afshan
* Man Chalay Ka Sauda<ref name=TFT>{{cite news|url=https://www.thefridaytimes.com/i-wanted-to-be-paid-more-than-all-other-actors-on-ptv/ |author=Ally Adnan|date=29 August 2014|newspaper=The Friday Times (newspaper)|title=I wanted to be paid more than all other actors on PTV |access-date=26 December 2019}}</ref>
* [[Ana (1984 TV series)|Ana]] (1985)
* Samandur<ref name=TFT/>
* Aagahi
* Fehmida Ki Kahani, Ustani Rahat Ki Zubani<ref name=TFT/>
* Massi Sherbate
* Show Shaa
* [[Panah (TV series)|Panah]]
* Agar Nama Bar Milay

==Books==
* ''A Woman of Substance: The Memoirs Of Begum Khurshid Mirza'' (an autobiography, edited by Lubna Kazim. Delhi: Zubaan 2005)<ref name=telegraph/><ref name=goodreads>[https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35418983-woman-of-substance Woman Of Substance: The Memoirs Of Begum Khurshid Mirza on goodreads.com website] Retrieved 24 December 2019</ref>

==Death and legacy==
Begum Khurshid Mirza died in 1989 at [[Lahore]], Pakistan. In 2004, an event was arranged to pay tributes to Begum Khurshid Mirza in Lahore, where many Pakistani dignitaries gathered including [[Senate of Pakistan|Senator]] [[S.M. Zafar]] and [[Human Rights Commission of Pakistan]] Director [[I.A. Rehman]]. They recalled her efforts for the tribal women during her stay in [[Quetta]] in the 1950s where she also used to hold events to raise funds for [[All Pakistan Women's Association]] (APWA).<ref name=Dawn>[https://www.dawn.com/news/354765/lahore-a-tribute-to-late-artiste LAHORE: A tribute to late artiste (Begum Khurshid Mirza)] Dawn (newspaper), Published 26 March 2004, Retrieved 24 December 2019</ref>

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
* A Few Rare Pictures of Renuka Devi: https://www.flickr.com/photos/rashid_ashraf/31821508491/in/dateposted/

{{Pride of Performance for Arts}}
{{PTV Programs}}
{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mirza, Begum Khurshid}}
[[Category:People from Aligarh]]
[[Category:Pakistani film actresses]]
[[Category:Pakistani television actresses]]
[[Category:1918 births]]
[[Category:1989 deaths]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Pride of Performance]]
[[Category:Actresses from Karachi]]
[[Category:20th-century Pakistani actresses]]
[[Category:Actresses in Hindi cinema]]

Begum Khurshid Mirza - Revision history

>WikiCleanerBot at 22:48, 2 July 2021