Zeba Bakhtiar

Zeba Bakhtiar (Urdu: زيبا بختيار‎) is a Pakistani film and television actress, and a television series director. She made her television debut with a Pakistan Television Corporation (PTV) drama play, Anarkali (1988). She gained a lot of fame through her Bollywood debut, Henna in 1991. She also gained much media attention due to her marriage with a famous music video performer Adnan Sami and the subsequent custody battles of her son after their divorce in 1997.

Bakhtiar's performance in the TV play Anarkali (1988), a sad love story, won her critical acclaim in Pakistan's entertainment world. The role of Anarkali helped prepare her for her big screen debut with the hit movie Henna (1991), produced and directed by Randhir Kapoor in India. Her work in Henna was widely appreciated, but it was her performance in the Pakistani film Sargam (1995) that won her the prestigious Nigar Award in Pakistan.

Bakhtiar also appeared in movies such as Mohabbat Ki Arzoo (1994), Stuntman (1994), Jai Vikraanta (1995) which were all box office duds in India. She then returned to Pakistan in films like Muqadama (1996), Chief Sahib (1996), Qaid (1996) and Babu (2001). She attempted to direct a movie called Babu in (2001) which proved to be another Box Office disaster. Apart from movies, Bakhtiar often took starring roles in major television serials, in which she brought new levels of intensity with her performances. For instance, in Laag she gave a memorable performance as the leader of the 'Kashmiri Independence Movement'. Her portrayal of a handicapped girl in Pehli See Mohabbat was just mind-boggling as were her performances in the Lollywood films Kundi and Sargam.

She will return to television with a prominent role in Haissam Hussain's adaptation of Farhat Ishtiaq's novel Bin Roye Ansuu which stars Humayun Saeed, Mahira Khan and Armeena Rana Khan.

Zeba Bakhtiar is the daughter of a famous Pakistani political personality and a former attorney general Yahya Bakhtiar has Balochi origin.Bakhtiar married singer Adnan Sami but they divorced in 1997. They have a son together named Azaan.

Television