Mumtaz Jehan Begum Dehlavi (14 February 1933 – 23 February 1969), known professionally as Madhubala (), was an Indian actress who worked in Hindi films. She is regarded to have been one of the greatest and finest actresses in the history of Indian cinema. One of the country's highest-paid stars in the 1950s, Madhubala appeared in over 70 filmsranging from slapstick comedies to historical dramasin a two decade-long career. and was an employee at the Imperial Tobacco Company in Delhi. Five of Madhubala's siblings died in infancy; her sisters who survived to adulthood were Kaneez Fatima, Altaf, Zeb (known professionally as Chanchal), Shahida and Zahida.
During the extended production of Mughal-e-Azam through 1958 and early 1959, Madhubala continued to work in physically taxing scenes, one of which led to her collapsing on set. For the sequences depicting her character's imprisonment, she insisted on wearing authentic iron chains. The weight of these chains resulted in skin abrasions and necessitated intervals of bed rest. The musical sequence "Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya" was to be filmed in Eastmancolor; it required complex choreography that Madhubala was unable to perform due to her sickness. K. Asif instead utilized male Kathak dancer Laxmi Narayan as a body double for the long shots and wide-angle footwork. Narayan performed the choreography wearing a rubber face mask to resemble Madhubala; she filmed only for the close-up shots and facial expressions. Principal photography for Mughal-e-Azam eventually concluded in May 1959. The film's production is credited for the subsequent deterioration of Madhubala's health; Asif's then-wife Sitara Devi commented, "The chains, the continuous night shootings … killed her."
Madhubala continued to work through 1959; in August, Kishore Kumar launched his ambitious project Suhana Geet with her as the leading lady. Madhubala's film releases of 1959 included Insan Jaag Utha and Kal Hamara Hai; She reunited with Raj Kapoor after a decade and played his love interest in Do Ustad. In November, Madhubala's declining health forced a brief sabbatical, halting production on Jhumroo, Suhana Geet (both opposite Kishore Kumar), and Sharabi (opposite Dev Anand). She returned to work in early 1960 for the second venture of Madhubala Private Ltd., a comedy titled Mehlon Ke Khwab. The film, which starred Madhubala alongside Kishore Kumar and Chanchal, released in March 1960. It had poor financial returns, and was panned by Baburao Patel, who bemoaned that Madhubala appeared sick and "neither acts well nor looks good".
Released on 5 August 1960, Mughal-e-Azam broke several box office records and became the highest-grossing Indian film at the time. The film received 11 nominations at the 8th Filmfare Awards, including Best Actress for Madhubala.