Key Points

The award was presented on Saturday at the 8th edition of the Radiant Wellness Conclave 2025, which also marked the conclave's 10th anniversary.

Speaking to ANI, Shabana looked back at her journey with deep emotion and shared how she never imagined she would still be working after five decades. She also added that the feeling she carries most is "gratitude" to filmmakers who believed in her, co-stars who worked alongside her, every technician who supported her, and above all, her parents.

"When I started 50 years ago, I had absolutely no idea that I would still be working 50 years later. So the thing I feel most is gratitude, gratitude to all the filmmakers that had faith in me, to my co-stars who worked with me, and every single technician, and every single person who's been responsible for that journey, and most of all, for my parents, who gave me the absolute freedom to pursue what I wanted to do," she told ANI.

The award was jointly presented by Col. David Devasahayam, Patron of the Radiant Wellness Conclave, Renuka David, Founder of the conclave, and Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, who also serves as Mentor of the conclave.

Shabana is considered one of the leading lights of Indian New Wave cinema from the 1970s and 1980s, alongside the late Smita Patil.

Born to renowned poet and lyricist Kaifi Azmi and theatre actress Shaukat Azmi, she has worked with some of India's most respected filmmakers, including Shyam Benegal, Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen, and Aparna Sen. Over the years, she has portrayed strong female characters in films such as Mrityu Dand (1997) and Godmother (1999), and also shared the screen with Rajesh Khanna in seven successful films.

- ANI