Pushpa Hans

Pushpa Hans Kapoor (1917–2011) was an Indian playback singer and actor of the Hindi and Punjabi film industries in the 1940s and 1950s. She was known for her songs in the 1950 Hindi film, Sheesh Mahal and her acting in the 1949 film Apna Desh. She was a recipient of the fourth highest Indian civilian award of the Padma Shri. Hans was born on 30 November 1917 at Fazilka in Punjab of the British India to Ratan Lal Kapoor, a lawyer and Janak Rani Kapoor. Her schooling was at the local school in Fazilka, after which she studied classical music at Patwardhan Gharana of Lahore from where she graduated in music. She started her career at the Lahore station of the All India Radio and subsequently entered film industry as a playback singer. Later, she also acted in many Hindu films, notably in Apna Desh, a 1949 Hindi film directed by renowned filmmaker, V. Shantaram.The Government of India awarded her the fourth highest civilian honor of the Padma Shri, in 2007, for her contributions to cinema. She received two more awards the same year, Punjabi Bhushan Award and Kalpana Chawla Excellence Award.Pushpa Hans, who was married to Hans Raj Chopra, a colonel in the Indian Army, died on 9 December 2011.