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Cuckoo Moray

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cuckoo Moray
Born1928
British Raj
Died30 September 1981 (aged 52–53)
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
OccupationsActress, dancer
Years active1946–1963

Cuckoo Moray, also credited as Cuckoo or Cukoo (1928 – 30 September 1981), was an Anglo-Indian dancer and actress in Indian cinema.[1] She is widely regarded as the first dance star of Hindi cinema and a pioneering figure in Bollywood's dance number culture. Active during the 1940s and 1950s, she was known as the "rubber girl" because of her tremendous flexibility and dancing ability, and commanded high fees for her performances. She was also the mentor of cabaret dancer Helen and helped pave her way into Bollywood.[2]

Early career

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Born during the late British Raj, Cuckoo made her screen debut in the film Arab Ka Sitara in 1946. Soon after in Stum Chandi, directors and greater audiences noticed her dancing abilities for the first time. Then, the turning point in Cuckoo's career was in Mehboob Khan's films. Her dance number in his film Anokhi Ada (1948) established her as the lead dancer of the era and in Andaz (1949), a romantic drama starring Nargis, Dilip Kumar, and Raj Kapoor, gave the dancing star an opportunity to display her acting skills. In Mehboob Khan's 1952 technicolor film Aan, which was her first colour film, she had a brief cameo in a dance sequence. She only appeared in 2 colour films in her career Aan & Mayurpankh. She would charge Rs 6,000[3] for a dance number, an enviable fee in the 50s.[4]

Later life

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Cuckoo remained the top dancer in Hindi films until dancers such as Helen and Vyjayanthimala came into the industry. Cuckoo was a family friend of the Anglo-Burmese dancer and actress Helen. She was also known for helping unknown actors get their break in Bollywood, such as Pran in Ziddi. Cuckoo had introduced a 13-year-old Helen into films as a chorus dancer in films such as Shabistan and Awaara (both 1951). Cuckoo and Helen most notably appeared in song and dance sequences together, such as in Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958) and Yahudi (1958). Her last film appearance was in Mujhe Jeene Do in 1963 after which, she had disappeared from the film industry.

Cuckoo was fond of luxury and reportedly had three luxury cars, one was used by her, the other meant for her pet dog and the last one by Helen. She owned several apartments and a lot of jewelry but is said to have lost them for violating income tax rules.[5] Because of this, she had no money left. As her fortunes dwindled, she battled terminal cancer, dying at the age of 52.[6] Cuckoo died on 30 September 1981 due to cancer[3] at the age of 53. At the last moment, the situation became such that the film industry left her in oblivion. There was no money even to buy medicines, due to which Cuckoo could not get herself treated and no one from the film industry came forward to help her. She was forgotten and unattended by the film industry at the time of her death.

It has been recently confirmed that Cuckoo's real name was Cuckoo Moray.[7]

Filmography

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Year Title Role Language Notes
1946Arab Ka SitaraDancerHindi
1946Hum Ek HainDancerHindi
1947Mirza SahebanDancerHindi
1947Aage BadhoDancerHindi
1947Do BhaiDancerHindi
1948Anokhi AdaStage dancerHindi
1948MelaDancerHindi
1948VidyaDancerHindi
1948ChandralekhaDancerHindi
1948Ghar Ki IzzatDancerHindi
1949AndazSheilaHindi
1949BarsaatRubyHindi
1949DulariDancerHindi
1949PatangaDancerHindi
1949ParasDancerHindi
1949ShairFlora / MohiniHindi
1949SingaarDancerHindi
1949BazarDancerHindi
1949Ek Thi LadkiDancerHindi
1949NamoonaDancerHindi
1950ArzooDancerHindi
1950PardesDancerHindi
1950DilrubaLachchhiHindi
1950BebasDancerHindi
1950Hanste AansooDancerHindi
1950MagroorDancerHindi
1950SargamDancerHindi
1950NiralaDancerHindi
1951AfsanaDancerHindi
1951HulchulDancerHindi
1951AwaaraBar dancerHindi
1951SanamDancerHindi
1951Bade BhaiyaDancerHindi
1951TaranaDancerHindi
1952AanDancerHindi
1952Baiju BawraDancerHindi
1952Nau BaharDancerHindi
1952SangdilDancerHindi
1952Anand MathDancerHindi
1953Alif LailaDancerHindi
1953Laila MajnuDancerHindi
1953SholeDancerHindi
1953Rail Ka DibbaDancerHindi
1953JhamelaDancerHindi
1953FootpathDancerHindi
1954Alibaba Aur 40 ChorDancerHindi
1954NastikDancerHindi
1954ShartDancerHindi
1954AmarDancerHindi
1955Mr. and Mrs. 55DancerHindi
1955AzaadDancerHindi
1955Uran KhatolaDancerHindi
1955Marine DriveDancerHindi
1955DevdasDancerHindi
1956C.I.D.DancerHindi
1956Raj HathDancerHindi
1956FuntooshDancerHindi
1956Basant BaharDancerHindi
1957Naya DaurDancerHindi
1957Tumsa Nahin DekhaDancerHindi
1957PyaasaDancerHindi
1958Chalti Ka Naam GaadiDancerHindi
1958YahudiDancerHindi
1958Howrah BridgeDancerHindi
1958PhagunDancerHindi
1959Bus ConductorDancerHindi
1959SujataDancerHindi
1959Raja Malaya SimhaDancerHindi
1959Dil Deke DekhoDancerHindi
1960SingaporeDancerHindi
1960Kala BazarDancerHindi
1961PassportDancerHindi
1961JhumrooDancerHindi
1962Girls' HostelDancerHindi
1963Mujhe Jeene DoDancerHindiFinal film

References

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  1. ↑ Rishi, Tilak (2012). Bless You Bollywood!: A tribute to Hindi Cinema on completing 100 years. Trafford Publishing. p. 240. ISBN 978-1-466-93962-2.
  2. ↑ Sahoo, Nitesh Kumar. "Cuckoo Moray: Bollywood's first 'Item Girl' who trained Helen but died in poverty". odishatv.in. Retrieved 2 June 2026.
  3. 1 2 The Tragic ending of Cuckoo Moore – Helen remembers Cuckoo, CinePlot, archived from the original on 8 December 2015, retrieved 14 January 2016
  4. ↑ Sandip Pal (20 August 2015). "Forgotten gems of Bollywood - The Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
  5. ↑ "इस हीरोइन के कुत्ते भी अलग गाड़ी में घूमते थे, आखिरी वक्त में दवा को भी नहीं थे पैसे". Amar Ujala (in Hindi). Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  6. ↑ "Cuckoo Moray To Parveen Babi, Bollywood Stars Who Faced Financial Hardships In Last Days". News18. 8 August 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  7. ↑ "Cuckoo's cineplot profile". Archived from the original on 22 September 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2012.
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