4 min readNew DelhiApr 22, 2026 10:19 AM IST Back in the 1970s, a journalist’s pen carried immense power. A single gossip column could make or break a star’s career. Among the most feared voices of that era was Devyani Chaubal, often described as a journalist with a “poisonous pen.” She was best known for her popular column Frankly Speaking in Star & Style magazine. At one point, Chaubal published a controversial piece about Mumtaz’s personal life, making a shocking claim about her father—“uske baap ka koi thikana nahi.” While many stars chose to ignore such gossip, Mumtaz decided she had had enough. Determined to counter what she saw as baseless and defamatory claims, she took Chaubal to court, ultimately forcing an apology. Mumtaz recalls going to court against the journalist Recalling the incident in an interview with Vickey Lalwani, Mumtaz said, “Yes, she claimed that nobody knows who is Mumtaz’s father. Then I dragged her to the court.” She went on to describe how she contacted her father, an Irani man based in Hyderabad …