Renowned film critic Maithili Rao on her new book: 'Smita Patil - A Brief Incandescence'

"....She seems to have been amazingly self-effacing, not taken in by the trappings of stardom. It has to be innate and also the ethos of strong middle-class values with which she grew up. Actually, I call Smita the pioneer of social work at the zenith of her career — unlike stars like Nargis who became socially active after retiring from films.

If she were not so passionately committed to the cause of women, the performances would not have been so authentic. This was not merely at the level of propaganda. It was a lived faith...."

http://www.thehindu.com/books/literary-review/maithili-rao-speaks-with-kunal-ray-about-smita-patil-a-brief-incandescence/article7769651.ece