R. K. Nayyar

R. K. Nayyar Biography

R. K. Nayyar was a popular filmmaker of Bollywood, best known for his debut work – Love in Shimla, released in 1960. The movie also marked the Bollywood debut of actress Sadhana Shivdasani, who later became his wife and the movie turned out to be a blockbuster, establishing Sadhana as a leading actress of 1960s. 16-year old Sadhana fell in love with 22-year old young director on the sets of their debut film. Due to threatening from Sadhana’s parents, Nayyar got scared and backed off from marriage. But in 1966, their marriage happened with the help of Raj Kapoor, though faced objections.

R. K. Nayyar is also known for giving the distinct ‘Sadhana Hair Cut’ to his leading lady, which later became an iconic fashion quotient. Nayyar created a new hair style for Sadhana, modeled after Audrey Hepburn’s hairstyle to cover up Sadhana’s flaw, her broad forehead. With the movie release, ‘Sadhana Hair Cut’ became immensely popular among college going girls and Sadhana’s name was placed among the charming B-town ladies of 1960s.  

R. K. Nayyar started off as an assistant director in the late 1950s for the movies like Boot Polish and Aah. Love in Shimla – was the debut work of R. K. Nayyar, when he was only 22. He wrote its screenplay too. Though the movie turned out to be a blockbuster and Sadhana became an overnight star, Nayyar did only a few movies later and none could replicate the success of his debut film. The movie starred Joy Mukherjee as hero and its super hit songs were composed by Iqbal Qureshi. Nayyar worked with Sadhana once again for the movie, Intequam, which was a huge hit. Aao Pyaar Karen (1964), Yeh Zindagi Kitni Haseen Hai (1966), Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke (1963) and Qatl (1986) are his other major works. Apart from direction, he has also scripted and produced a few movies.

He married Sadhana on 7 March 1966 and they lived together for almost 30 years. Nayyar passed away in 1995 due to astma. The couple had no children. After his death, Sadhana lived a solitary life till her death on December 25, 2015 (exactly 20 years after his death).

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Updated: December 30, 2015