When Kamini Kaushal broke down after receiving lifetime achievement award, said, "I miss my gang, most of them are gone..."

When Kamini Kaushal broke down after receiving lifetime achievement award, said, "I miss my people, most of them are gone..."

Veteran actress Kamini Kaushal, one of the last surviving icons of Hindi cinema’s earliest era, has passed away at the age of 98. Reports confirm that she had been facing age-related health issues in recent months. With her death, the industry has lost a performer whose presence connected today’s generation to a time when Indian cinema was still discovering its identity.

As tributes pour in, many are revisiting one of her most moving public moments from the last decade. In 2016, at the 60th Filmfare Awards, Kamini Kaushal was honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award. The moment turned emotional as she reflected on the long, winding journey she had lived inside the film industry and the people she had lost along the way.

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The honour was presented by Jaya Bachchan, who offered a heartfelt note on stage. She said, “You’ve been in this industry for 70 years. And the Filmfare Award is only 60 years old. Long overdue. When you came into this industry, there were very few educated girls. And the family you came from, those girls didn’t appear in films. So you really started a different trend. And we followed… Her achievement has been great, wonderful, fantastic.”
It was a rare moment, marked by warmth between two women who had walked very different paths in cinema but shared the same respect for its legacy.

Kamini Kaushal’s response was honest and deeply human. Holding the microphone, she said, “It’s been a long journey. A very long journey. Right from 45 to 15 now. I am very grateful to all of you for coming here… I am missing our gang today. Most of them are gone. Not fair. Just not fair… But luckily you can always revive the memories.”

Also Read: Jaya Bachchan and Waheeda Rehman attend veteran actress Kamini Kaushal’s prayer meet

The audience watched as she paused, her voice revealing both pride and loss. She went on to speak about how the industry had transformed over the years, joking that she felt “jealous” of the younger generation because she no longer had their energy. It captured her trademark blend of grace and humour, even at 90.

Her film career began with Neecha Nagar, the pathbreaking 1946 film that won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. From that extraordinary start, she delivered memorable performances in Shaheed, Nadiya Ke Paar, Shabnam, Arzoo, Biraj Bahu, and several other classics including Do Bhai, Ziddi, Paras, Aabroo, Night Club and Godaan.