In Daera, her barren life and subsequent disintegration underscores the Indian
Woman's lack of selfhood and remains one of the great moments of screen acting.
In Sharda she gave a tour de force performance as Raj Kapoor's lover who becomes
his stepmother. Unfortunately coming in the same year as Mother India, Nargis
swept all the awards but the Bombay Film Journalists Association named Meena as
their best actress of the year for Sharda.
