Cukoo

Cukoo, also credited as Cuckoo, was an Anglo-Indian dancer and Actress in Indian cinema (1929–1981). Cukoo was the queen of film dancing in the 1940s. Though unfamiliar name, she was known as "rubber girl" of Hindi cinema and her talent made cabaret a must in the Bollywood films during the 1950s and 1970s.

Career

Cukoo made her screen debut in the film Arab Ka Sitara in (1946). Then soon after in Stum Chandi, in which the large audience and directors noticed her dancing abilities for the first time. Then there was the turning point in Cukoo's career were in Melibmih Khan's films. Her dance numbers in his film Anokhi Ada established her as the lead dancer of the era and in Andaz (1949), a romantic drama starring Nargis, Dilip Kumar, and Raj Kapoor, and gave the dancer an opportunity to display her acting skills. It has been recently confirmed that Cuckoo’s real name was Cuckoo Moray

Later life

Cukoo remained the best dancer in Hindi films until dancers like Helen and Vyjayanthimala came along in the industry. Cukoo was a family friend of the Anglo-Burmese dancer and actress Helen. Cukoo had introduced a 13-year-old Helen into films as a chorus dancer in the films like Shabistan and Awaara(1951). She also helped actor Pran get a break in Ziddi. Cukoo and Helen most notably appeared in song and dance sequences together like in Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi.

Cukoo died in 1981. Little to no information is publicly known about her personal life, not even her real name, birth date, or exactly how and when she died.

Selected filmography

• Andaz (1949)
• Barsaat (1949)
• Arzoo (1950)
• Hamari Beti (1950)
• Hulchul (1951)
• Awaara (1951)
• Aan (1952)
• Mr. and Mrs. 55 (1955)
• Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958)
• Yahudi (1958)
• Mujhe Jeene Do (1963)

References

External links

• Cukoo at the Internet Movie Database