Jaya Bachchan (née Bhaduri; born 9 April 1948) is an Indian actress and politician. She is a member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha from the Samajwadi Party, serving four terms since 2004. Known primarily for her work in Hindi and Bengali cinema, she is noted for reinforcing a natural style of acting in both mainstream and "middle-of-the-road" cinema. She has received several accolades, including nine Filmfare Awards and the Padma Shri, the fourth-highest civilian honour awarded by the Government of India. Making her film debut as a teenager in Satyajit Ray's Mahanagar (1963), Bachchan's first screen role as an adult was in Guddi (1971), directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, with whom she collaborated in several films thereafter. She was noted for her performances in films like Uphaar (1971), Koshish (1972) and Kora Kagaz (1974). She starred alongside Amitabh Bachchan in several films, including Zanjeer (1973), Abhimaan (1973), Chupke Chupke (1975) and Mili (1975). The cult film Sholay (1975) saw her playing the much-lauded role of a young widow. Following her marriage to Amitabh Bachchan and the birth of their children, she restricted her work in films, notably starring in Nauker (1979) and Silsila (1981). After a 17-year sabbatical, she returned to acting with Govind Nihalani's independent drama Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa (1998). She has since played emotionally troubled mothers in the commercially successful dramas Fiza (2000), Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001) and Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003). Career Acting career Jaya Bachchan is an alumna of the Film and Television Institute of India. She first starred in Satyajit Ray's Bengali film, Mahanagar (1963) at the age of 15, with Anil Chatterjee and Madhabi Mukherjee.She then appeared in two more Bengali films: a 13-minute short Suman, and the comedy Dhanyee Meye (1971), where she played the role of Uttam Kumar's sister-in-law. Inspired by her experience with Ray, she joined the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune and graduated with the gold medal. Hrishikesh Mukherjee cast her in Guddi (1971), to play the eponymous role of a petite school-girl obsessed with film star Dharmendra. Guddi was a commercial success, and created the girl-next-door image for her, which she was often associated with through the rest of her career. While she did venture out to play glamorous roles as in Jawani Diwani, (1972) and a semi-negative character of an amnesia-faking heroine in Anamika (1973), she was most recognised for her roles