Hannah Mitchell’s real name is Anne Nicodemus (born August 24, 1962, in Maryland, USA). Her family moved to London, England, in 1969. In 1980, her family moved to Bangalore, India, where they lived for several years and where she joined them in 1981. Through her mother’s art groups, Anne got involved with the Medico Pastoral Association, working as a volunteer using dance and movement with adults with a mental illness. She also had the opportunity to work with a local agency Design & Print Group on several shows & plays, and also with a local school on their production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”.

It was through “the grape vine” that T. Rama Rao, director of “Yeh To Kamaal Ho Gaya”, came to hear of Anne - and he flew to Bangalore to meet with her to discuss the role of Kathryn in the film “Yeh To Kamaal Ho Gaya”. With her London dance and gymnastic training, and a “can do” attitude, Anne agreed to take part. She also appeared briefly in a couple other Bollywood movies (titles unknown).

Anne says “It was a great experience working with Kamal, Poonam and all the other workers involved on the film - some very nice people to meet and get to know over several months. I decided not to pursue a “career” in the industry, however, as my first interest was always towards a more social health & well-being area of work.”

On the job, Anne enjoyed staying in 5 star hotels, but refused to play the “star” who never carried her own bag, or left it to someone else to brush her hair! Her best memories are swimming in the hotel swimming pool, eating in the restaurant (with friend who acted as escort) - sari falling off on the dance floor, and remembering the face of the dialogue coach as he tried to teach her her Hindi lines.

After returning to London in 1984, Anne set about adding to her dance/movement training working in the community, Social Services and National Health Service, and furthered her education with a Diploma in “Body-Mind Awareness as a Therapeutic Process”, a BA in “Health-Related Fitness in the 50+ Adult”, and an MSc in “Health Promotion”. She says, “Having left school with only 3 ”˜O’ levels it’s never too late to return to studies, and even better when you know what you want! I’ve been very fortunate to live in a country that has an accessible education system”

Anne now lives in Hertfordshire, England, where she is married, raising a daughter, and is working for local government.

Here are some great clips with Anne and Kamal Hasan.

and the great fight sequence!