# Baby Madhuri
**Baby Madhuri** was the screen name of a [Hindi cinema](https://www.edgepedia.org/hindi-cinema) child actress of the 1940s, born Mah Laqa (also written Mahleka Bano), the youngest sister of the actress [Meena Kumari](https://www.edgepedia.org/meena-kumari). She worked as a child artiste from 1940, was praised for her dancing, and later married the comedian Mehmood, becoming the mother of the singer [Lucky Ali](https://www.edgepedia.org/lucky-ali).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Real name | Mah Laqa (Mahleka Bano); known first as Baby Madhuri, then as Madhu[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri) |
| Family | Youngest of three daughters of Ali Bux and Iqbal Begum; sisters were the actresses Meena Kumari and Khurshid Jr.[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri) • [2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/) |
| Debut | Sandesa (1940), Hind Pictures, directed by Nazir[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri) |
| Notable child roles | Muqabla (1942), Mahatma Vidur (1943), Bachpan (1945), Nai Maa (1946)[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri) |
| Reputation | Prolific dancing skills; contemporaries called her the Indian "Shirley Temple"[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri) |
| Later life | Married the comedian Mehmood; mother of the singer Lucky Ali[3](https://hindigeet.in/film/bachpan-1945/) |
| Died | 23 January 1993, Mumbai[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri) |
## Family and entry into films
Baby Madhuri was born into a family already working in cinema. Her father, Ali Bux (also written M. Ali Baksh), was a music director, and her mother, Iqbal Begum, was a film artiste. She was the youngest of three daughters; the middle sister became the major star Meena Kumari, and the eldest, Khurshid Jr., was also an actress[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri) • [2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/). According to the film historian Arunkumar Deshmukh, the three sisters grew up in Dadar, Bombay, where the music director Naushad was a neighbor[2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/).
She began working in films to support her family during a financial crisis[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri). The director Nazir of Hind Pictures picked her for his film *Sandesa* (1940), which became her debut[2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/).
## Child career, 1940 to 1946
*Sandesa* was centered on Hindu-Muslim communal harmony, following the friendship of three young people across religious divides, and it drew praise from audiences, critics, and the censor board; Baby Madhuri's own role in the film was highly praised[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri).
Her acting and singing talents flowered, in Deshmukh's account, in the Wadia film *Vishwas-43*, after which she acted and sang in films including *Anjaan*, *Jungle Princess*, *Muqabla*, *Ekta* (Sindhi), *Andhera*, *Mahatma Vidur*, *Paraya Dhan*, *Bachpan*, and *Nai Maa*[2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/).
**Muqabla (1942).** This Wadia Movietone production starred [Fearless Nadia](https://www.edgepedia.org/fearless-nadia) in a double role as twin sisters, the good Madhuri and the bad Rita, and claimed to be the first Indian film to use a split-screen for a double role; Baby Madhuri appeared in the cast alongside Yakub, Agha, and Dalpat[4](https://indiancine.ma/DPI/documents).
**Bachpan (1945).** Directed by Homi Wadia for Basant Pictures, this social family drama cast her as Madhu, a cheerful child sent to live with a bitter recluse, Bhairav (Mazhar Khan), whose kindness gradually returns him to human company; the aunt then abducts the girl and sells her as a companion to a wealthy invalid child, Kamla (Baby [Shakuntala](https://www.edgepedia.org/shakuntala))[3](https://hindigeet.in/film/bachpan-1945/). Baby Madhuri carried the main child role throughout the film, while Baby Shakuntala played a child confined to a wheelchair[2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/). A contemporary retrospective notes that the trade press of the time was calling her the best of the country's child artistes at exactly this point[3](https://hindigeet.in/film/bachpan-1945/).
She was also credited in later productions, including [Nanabhai Bhatt](https://www.edgepedia.org/nanabhai-bhatt)'s *Veer Babruvahan* (1950) for Basant Pictures[5](https://www.tuliresearchcentre.org/objects/veer-babruvahan-1950-cinema-showcard-1375).
## Reputation
Contemporary accounts single out her dancing. Cinemaazi records that her prolific dancing skills earned her the nickname "Shirley Temple", after the Hollywood child actor of the 1930s[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri). Deshmukh adds that she was good at both acting and singing, and that in her early days Meena Kumari did playback singing for her sister Madhuri in some films[2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/).
## Later life
As an adult she was known as Madhu. She married the comedian Mehmood, and one of their children was the singer and actor Lucky Ali[3](https://hindigeet.in/film/bachpan-1945/) • [2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/). Deshmukh records that she was fond of fashion and western clothes, knew riding, cycling, and swimming, and spoke good English despite limited formal education[2](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/). She died on 23 January 1993 in Mumbai[1](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri).
## References
1. [Baby Madhuri, Cinemaazi Artists encyclopedia](https://cinemaazi.com/people/baby-madhuri)
2. [Arunkumar Deshmukh, "Bole re panchhi bole" (on Bachpan 1945 and Baby Madhuri), Atul's Song A Day, 28 May 2019](https://atulsongaday.me/2019/05/28/bole-re-panchhi-bole/)
3. [Bachpan (1945), HindiGeet film page](https://hindigeet.in/film/bachpan-1945/)
4. [Muqabla (1942), Indiancine.ma](https://indiancine.ma/DPI/documents)
5. [Veer Babruvahan (1950) showcard, Tuli Research Centre for India Studies](https://www.tuliresearchcentre.org/objects/veer-babruvahan-1950-cinema-showcard-1375)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Child and youth screen performers › Child performers born before 1986*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license