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Reena Roy Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated September 14, 2026 • 6 min read

Quick Info

Date of birth7 January 1957

Age68 Years

BirthplaceBombay (now Mumbai), India

ProfessionActor

NationalityIndian

Marital statusDivorced

SpouseMohsin Khan (second husband; divorced 1990)

FamilyDaughter: Sanam Khan (earlier Jannat)

Reena Roy Biography

Reena Roy is an Indian film actress who rose to prominence in the 1970s through a string of Hindi films, most notably the supernatural hit Nagin (1976). A

Early life and background

Reena Roy was born Saira Ali on 7 January 1957 in Bombay (now Mumbai). Her family background combined Muslim and Punjabi Hindu roots: her father Sadiq Ali worked in the film world and her mother Sharda Rai was involved in acting and film production. As a child she used the name Roopa Rai for a period before adopting the screen name Reena Roy.

She grew up in Mumbai and left formal schooling early; records describe her educational qualification as a school dropout. As a young person she enjoyed riding horses and travelling by motorcycle, and she was known to be a tomboy in childhood.

Career

Reena Roy began her career in entertainment as a model around 1970 and appeared in print advertising. Her first film role came in 1972 with Zaroorat, credited as Anju. Throughout the 1970s she built a busy film schedule, appearing in numerous Hindi films including Jaise Ko Taisa (1973), Umar Qaid (1975), Zakhmee (1975), Barood (1976) and the breakthrough Nagin (1976). Nagin established her as a leading actress and remains one of the films most closely associated with her career.

She developed a long on-screen partnership with Jeetendra, with whom she was paired in roughly 22 films; some of the notable collaborations include Apnapan (1977), Badaltey Rishtey (1978), Aasha (1980), Pyaasa Sawan (1982) and Arpan (1983). She also worked in Punjabi cinema, appearing in films such as Sat Sri Akal (1977) and Walayati Babu (1981).

Reena's work in the late 1970s and early 1980s brought industry recognition. She received Filmfare Award nominations for Best Actress for Nagin and Aasha, won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for Apnapan in 1979, and later received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998.

In the 1980s and 1990s her screen presence shifted. She was cast and later replaced in projects at times, and after a personal break she returned in films such as Aadmi Khilona Hai (1993), Policewala Gunda (1995), Kalyug Ke Avtaar (1995), Smuggler (1996), Gair (1999) and a role in Refugee (2000), after which she stepped away from mainstream Hindi films. She also worked as a producer on the 1991 film Gunehgar Kaun.

Beyond film, Reena appeared on television later in her career, including serial work and a TV production credit with Eena Meena Deeka (2015) and Rani Mahal (2015). In 2004 she and her sister launched an acting school.

Personal life

Reena Roy married twice. Her second marriage, to Pakistani cricketer Mohsin Khan, took place in 1983 and ended in divorce in 1990; the couple had one daughter, Sanam Khan (earlier known as Jannat), whose custody was awarded to Mohsin Khan. Public information lists her marital status as divorced. She has been publicly associated at various times with actors Shatrughan Sinha and, reportedly, Vinod Khanna.

Public profile

During the peak of her popularity Reena was among the top-paid actresses in Bollywood and frequently featured on magazine covers including Filmfare, Cine Blitz and others. She was a fan of Rajesh Khanna in her youth and spoke publicly about waiting for opportunities to work with him. Film writers and media have often noted resemblances between her screen look and later-generation actors; she has commented on such comparisons in interviews.

Reena is described as having brown eyes and brown hair, standing approximately 163 cm (5 feet 4 inches) tall. Her stated favourite actors include Jeetendra and Anil Kapoor; favourite actresses include Madhubala and Meena Kumari. She has said she enjoys foods such as pav bhaji and modak and counts Goa, Kashmir and London among preferred travel destinations.

Latest updates

In 2004 she was linked in media reports with campaigning for the Indian National Congress. In July 2021 she appeared as a special guest on the television show Indian Idol Season 12, which featured a dedicated special episode. Her career has also been commemorated through television segments and retrospective coverage of her films and public life.
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Recent Work

Eena Meena Deeka

Television appearance; aired on DD Metro and Star Plus (2015)

2015
Rani Mahal

Television serial aired on Sony (2015)

2015
Refugee

Film appearance (2000)

2000
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Career Highlights

  1. Film breakthrough with Nagin (1976)
  2. Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for Apnapan (1979)
  3. Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award (1998)
  4. Frequent on-screen pairing with Jeetendra across roughly 22 films
  5. Launched an acting school in 2004
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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Reena Roy born?

7 January 1957

What is Reena Roy known for?

Actor

What is Reena Roy’s marital status?

Divorced

Who is Reena Roy married to?

Mohsin Khan (second husband; divorced 1990)