Jaya Bachchan, is a Bollywood actress. She is an alumna of the Film and Television Institute of India. Jaya is married to actor Amitabh Bachchan. Jaya was born to Indira and Taroon Kumar Bhaduri, writer, journalist and stage artist. She studied in St. Joseph`s Convent School, Bhopal. She started her career with a small role in Satyajit Ray`s Mahanagar at the age of 15. After initial success in her native West Bengal, she became a success after Guddi in which she played a schoolgirl obsessed with film star Dharmendra after which she moved to Mumbai and starred in many Hindi films.

On June 3, 1973, she married Amitabh Bachchan. She has two children with him: Shweta Bachchan-Nanda and Abhishek Bachchan, who is also an actor. She has lived her entire married life in the public eye, yet she has always kept her distance from the media (especially when it comes to her personal life). She has two grandchildren, Navya Naveli and Agastya Nanda. Her son Abhishek was born while Jaya and Amitabh were working on the film Sholay. Following this she retired from films for a few years and focused on raising her children. Her last film was Silsila.

After a gap of 18 years, She returned in Hazaar Chaurasi Ki Maa (1998) and has since played mother roles which she has been praised for. Then again, in 2000 she starred in the film Fiza opposite Karisma Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan. The film was considered one of her best performances and she received the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for her work. Of late, Jaya became active in politics, notably with the Samajwadi party and has been a Member of Parliament, representing Rajya Sabha till lately. Doing a few films every year she also starred in Karan Johar`s family drama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001) with her husband. Her latest film Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003) was one of the biggest hits of the year and she again received a best supporting actress award for her performance. However, currently, Jaya has not done any movies since 2003, although she occasionally performs in stage-shows. She has received various Filmfare Awards for her roles in Kal Ho Naa Ho, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Fiza, Nauker and Abhimaan. She also received a special Life Time Achievement award in 1998 for her contributions to Indian cinema. She is a recipient of the Padma Shri.

Of late, Jaya became active in politics, notably with the Samajwadi party and has been a Member of Parliament, representing Rajya Sabha till lately. In a recent controversy, she was disqualified from the post of MP with the charge of occupying an office of profit along with holding a position as MP as against the sub-clause (a) of Clause 1 of Article 102 of the Constitution, where an MP is not allowed to hold any office of profit.