Aasha Singh Jaiswal, who is famous for her work in B.R. Chopra’s mythological series Mahabharat, has died in Mumbai at the age of 83. Her son Akkash Bharadwaj said she died at 7:30 pm on August 22, 2026. Her last rites were conducted on August 23 at the Pawan Hans Crematorium in Vile Parle West, Mumbai.
Aasha Singh Jaiswal had a long career in television, films, live performances and mimicry. Most people know her for her association with Mahabharat but she was so much more than an actor in Indian entertainment. She was also one of the pioneers of mimicry and her voice and mannerisms were so good in terms of Meena Kumari's voice and behaviour.
One of Jaiswal’s most celebrated television shows was in B.R. Chopra’s Mahabharat, where she portrayed Kripi, sister of Kripacharya in the Mahabharata. The show was one of the most important TV series in Indian television history and was one of the first to bring many actors to the masses of people in India and brought many of them to audiences across the country. Jaiswal’s role - in the middle of such a huge ensemble cast - is still among those in her television career.
Her film work also included appearances in some Hindi films. Her credits included the 1993 Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Baazigar and films like Bobby Jasoos, Deewangee, Aag, Kayda Kanoon, Aansu Bane Angaarey and Ghar Bazar. So she mostly had character roles, so she was well known in various types of Hindi entertainment.
Jaiswal was also very much part of her artistic identity in mimicry. She was called India’s first female mimicry artist in those reports, which has been credited as one of the first women to make this in India and that is part of her contribution to a field of performance where fewer women performers have been employed. She was able to paint well-known personalities, but in particular Meena Kumari, as part of her work. She brought mimicry to live performances beyond the film and television scene.
Jaiswal was also involved in cultural and social activities beyond acting and mimicry. She started Aasha Events and Films, a cultural event and programme company. So her career was wide beyond acting in front of the camera as well as involvement in entertainment and the culture.
Her son Akkash Bharadwaj said he was truly sad about her death and dedicated it himself to her. He remembered his mother as a hardworking “Iron Lady” and asked people to pray for her. He also urged people to refer back to her work on social media as well and recall what she did during her long career. Jaiswal has always appreciated her work and artistic life so much he said.
The family completed her last rites the morning after her death at the Pawan Hans Crematorium in Vile Parle West. Her death has brought new attention to a career that crossed several generations of Indian entertainment.
Aasha Singh Jaiswal’s legacy is particularly significant as she worked in many forms of performance. The combination of mythological television and Hindi cinema to mimicry and cultural events gave her different career perspectives over a long time. Her connection to Mahabharat ensured that her face was familiar to television viewers, and her work as an actor in mimicry made her distinctive in India's performance narrative.
Her death marks the loss of a veteran performer whose career epitomised a different era of Indian entertainment. During a time when television, cinema and live performance were closely linked, artists like Jaiswal moved between different platforms and built careers through versatility and dedication. Her work will continue to be remembered through the films, television programmes and performances she left behind.
As we all know from the Mahabharat and the history of Indian mimicry, Aasha Singh Jaiswal’s career is one of the examples of people who have contributed to Indian entertainment yet never got the recognition of the top stars. From television, cinema and live performances she really had a good career.
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