Ratna Pathak Shah | |
|---|---|
 Ratna Pathak at DIFF 2016 | |
| Born | (1957-08-07)7 August 1957 (age 68)[1][2] |
| Alma mater | National School of Drama |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 (Imaad andVivaan) |
| Mother | Dina Pathak |
| Relatives | Pathak-Shah family |
| Awards | Full list |
Ratna Pathak Shah (born 7 August 1957) is an Indian actress and director known for her work inHindi theatre, television, and films. Her extensive work in theatre includes a series of plays in both English and Hindi. She rose to prominence when she appeared in the hit TV serialIdhar Udhar in the 1980s.[3]
She garnered widespread recognition and acclaim with her portrayal ofMaya Sarabhai, a snobbish socialite in the cult sitcomSarabhai vs Sarabhai (2004–2006). Her other prominent roles include the coming-of-age romantic comedyJaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na (2008), the action comedyGolmaal 3 (2010), the family comedy-dramaKapoor & Sons (2016), the black-comedyLipstick Under My Burkha (2017) and the road adventure dramaDhak Dhak (2023), all of which earned her nominations for theFilmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress. She also received critical acclaim for her performances in the romantic comediesEk Main Aur Ekk Tu (2012) andKhoobsurat (2014). Her performance inAmazon Prime Video'santhology filmUnpaused (2020) earned her a nomination for theFilmfare OTT Award for Best Actress in a Web Original Film.
Daughter of actressDina Pathak, she married actorNaseeruddin Shah in 1982, with whom she has two sons. Her sister is actressSupriya Pathak, who is married to actorPankaj Kapur.
Ratna Pathak was born on 7 August 1957[4] inBombay, in theBombay State (nowMumbai, Maharashtra) of India, into aHindu family to aPunjabi father, Baldev Pathak and aGujarati mother,Dina Pathak (née Gandhi), fromAmreli inKathiawar.[5][1][2] She is the sister of actress,Supriya Pathak.[2][6]
Pathak grew up in theParsi Colony ofDadar with her sister,[7] and is an alumna of the J. B. Vachha High School and the 1981 batch[8] of theNational School of Drama inNew Delhi.[9]
As well as appearing in many successful films, includingMirch Masala, Ratna Pathak appeared as the wife inThe Perfect Murder.[10]
She also acted in the cult sitcomSarabhai vs Sarabhai where she played Maya Sarabhai, a high society socialite, for which she received the ITA Award for Best Actress – Comedy in 2005.
In July 2008 she appeared in the coming-of-age romantic comedyJaane Tu Ya Jaane Na as the mother of the protagonist.Naseeruddin Shah played her husband, as a deceased character who talks to her from a portrait. She has also acted in several Russian plays, as well as co-founding and being an active member of "Motley Theatre Group". She appeared in the action comedyGolmaal 3 oppositeMithun Chakraborty. She was a part of the Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan Selection Committee for 2012 Awards. Ratna Pathak Shah, who has appeared in many successful Hindi films, will come first time in a Gujarati movie “Kutch Express Gujarati Movie”.
Pathak marriedNaseeruddin Shah in 1982. They have two sons together,Imaad andVivaan Shah. Naseeruddin also has a daughter, Heeba Shah, from his first marriage.[2][11]
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Mandi | Malti Devi | Debut |
| 1987 | Mirch Masala | Pallavi | |
| 1989 | Jazeere | Mrs. Rita Mascarenhas | |
| 2002 | Encounter | Sudha Rao | |
| 2005 | Paheli | — | Voiceover |
| 2006 | Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota | Tara Shankarnarayanan | |
| 2008 | Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na | Savitri Rathod | Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2009 | Aladin | Marjina | |
| 2010 | Golmaal 3 | Geeta | Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2012 | Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu | Seema Kapoor | |
| 2014 | Khoobsurat | Nirmala Devi | |
| 2016 | Kapoor & Sons | Sunita Kapoor | Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2016 | Nil Battey Sannata | Dr. Reena Deewan | |
| 2017 | Lipstick Under My Burkha | Usha Makhija | Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |
| 2017 | Mubarakan | Arshveer/Jeeto Kaur Bajwa | [12] |
| 2018 | Love per Square Foot | Blossom D'Souza | |
| 2020 | Thappad | Sandhya | |
| Unpaused | Uma Raja Maheshwari | OTT film Nominated—Filmfare OTT Award for Best Actress in a Web Original Film | |
| 2021 | Hum Do Hamare Do | Deepti Kashyap | Hotstar film |
| 2022 | Attack | Shanti Shergill | [13] |
| Jayeshbhai Jordaar | Jashoda | [14] | |
| 2023 | Dhak Dhak | Manpreet Kaur Sethi "Mahi" | Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress[15] |
| 2025 | Detective Sherdil |
| Year | Film | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Heat and Dust | Ritu Verma[16] |
| 1988 | The Perfect Murder | Pratima Ghote |
| 1995 | Mr. Ahmed | Amma |
| 2011 | The Coffin Maker | Isabella |
| Year | Film | Role | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Kutch Express | Baiji | Debut |
| 2025 | Bachu Ni Benpani | Suman Gauri Nagar "Simmi" |
| Year (s) | Show | Character | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1985–1998 | Idhar Udhar | Sunita | |
| 1988 | Bharat Ek Khoj | Lakshmibai | Episode 42-43 1857 |
| 1993–1995 | Filmi Chakkar | Rukmani | |
| 1993–1997 | Tara | Kanchan | |
| 1996 | Mast Mast Hai Zindagi | Kalpana | |
| 1997 | Movers & Shakers | Herself | Guest appearance |
| 1999 | Gubbare | Ms. Gupta | Episode 6: Jhooth |
| 2000 | Apna Apna Style | Suman | |
| 2004–2006 | Sarabhai vs Sarabhai | Maya Sarabhai | |
| 2012 | The Late Night Show Jitna Rangeen Utna Sangeen | Herself | Guest appearance |
| 2017 | Sarabhai vs Sarabhai: Take 2 | Maya Sarabhai | |
| 2018 | Selection Day | Nellie | |
| 2023 | Trial By Fire | Mrs. Bedi | |
| Happy Family: Conditions Apply | Hemlata Mansukhlal Dholakia | [17] | |
| Charlie Chopra | Ms. Bharucha |
| Television Awards | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Show | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
| 2005 | Sarabhai vs Sarabhai | Indian Telly Awards | Best Actress in a Comic Role | Won | |
| 2006 | Indian Television Academy Awards | Best Actress – Comedy | Nominated | ||
| 2023 | Happy Family: Conditions Apply | 2023 Filmfare OTT Awards | Best Actress in a Comedy Series | Nominated | [18] |
At 28:18 - It's 7th of August
Naseeruddin Shah and Ratna Pathak: While Naseer is a Muslim, Ratna is a Gujarati Hindu.
My father Baldev Pathak was a Punjabi and mother, Dina Pathak, a Kathiawadi Gujarati.
No way did I think of being an actor," says Supriya who grew up in Parsi Colony in Dadar.
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