Daisy Irani Shukla is an Indian actress in Hindi and Telugu language films. She was a popular child actor in the 1950s and 1960s. She is most known for films such as Bandish, Ek Hi Raasta, Naya Daur, Hum Panchhi Ek Daal Ke, Jailor, Qaidi No 911 and Do Ustad. As a supporting actress, she acted in Kati Patang in 1971. She also worked in a popular TV showShararat.
Irani was born into a Zoroastrian family and her mother-tongue is Gujarati. She is the eldest of three sisters, the other two being Honey Irani and Menaka Irani. Her younger sister Honey, who was also a child-star, went on to marry script-writer Javed Akhtar and is the mother ofFarhan Akhtar and Zoya Akhtar. Irani's other sister, Menaka, is married to the stunt film-maker Kamran Khan and is the mother of film-makers Sajid Khan and Farah Khan. Daisy married screenwriter K. K. Shukla on 21 January 1971 at age 21. Her career as a child-star being at an end, she made no effort to pursue a career in films as an adult, but devoted herself to her husband and family. She has three children, a son named Kabir and two daughters, Varsha and Ritu. None of her children is involved with the entertainment industry in any capacity. Although born a Zoroastrian and married to a Hindu, Daisy grew interested in Christianity later in life. In 1975, she became a member of New Life Fellowship in Mumbai. In 2018, Daisy revealed that she had been raped at the age of 6 by her "guardian" during the making of Hum Panchhi Ek Daal Ke.
Career
During the Golden Age of Hindi cinema, some child stars had great visibility. The Irani sisters, Daisy and Honey, who generally played boys with curly hair, became household names. The films that had both of them fetched the biggest openings. Stories were re-written to include them in the cast or increase their footage, and they were prominently publicized in the promos of their movies. Their most-remembered movies, together or separate, include Bandish, Jagte Raho, Bhai Bhai, Naya Daur, Hum Panchi Ek Daal Ke, Musafir, Sahara, Quedi No. 9211, Duniya Na Mane, Do Ustad, Dhool Ka Phool, Soorat Aur Seerat and Chandi Ki Diwar. Daisy, who was more popular than her younger sister as a child artiste, continued to act after growing up, though not in any significant roles. She quit films after her marriage in 1971, with her last release being Kati Patang in 1971. In the 1980s, she worked in theatre for a while and started an acting school. After the death of her husband in the early 1990s, she returned to acting inthe comedyTV seriesDekh Bhai Dekh and films such as , Kya Kehna and Shararat. She appeared in nephew Sajid Khan's 2010 Housefull and thereafter in niece Farah Khan's acting debut film Shirin Farhad Ki Toh Nikal Padi, directed by Bela Sehgal.
