Persis Khambatta was born in Bombay, India. As a beautiful young woman, she became Miss India in 1965 and later entered the world of international film. She was also a model for various companies, including Revlon. Her biggest acting break was getting the role of Lt. Ilia, the bald Deltan alien in _Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)_ . Unfortunately, her film career did not take off and, with the possible exception of Nighthawks, the movies were not very good. She also made guest appearances on American TV shows. In the early 1980s, Khambatta had to have a heart bypass. A year before her death, she wrote and published a coffee table book called "Pride of India" which featured former Miss Indias; it was dedicated to Mother Teresa and part of the royalties went to the Missionaries of Charity. On Monday, August 17, 1998, Khambatta was admitted to the Marine Hospital in South Mumbai complaining of chest pains. Early the next morning she died of a massive heart attack. She was only 47.
Was a former Miss India 1965. Was seriously injured in 1980 following a car crash in Germany which left her with a large scar on her head Shaved her head for the role of Ilia in the film Star Trek: The Motion Picture. At first, she shed tears over the haircut, but smiled after the finishing powder was applied to her scalp and her facial features were more defined by Fred Philips. Before her death, she wrote a coffee table book about the history of the Miss India pageant titled Pride of India. Has an action figure modeled after her character Star Trek character Ilia. Before her death, she was forced to sell her cooking stove to pay bills. Her Deltan character, Lt. Illia was stationed on Earth (just as her lover, Cmndr. Decker was on Delta IV) and attended Nehru University while a Starfleet cadet. Explaining Illia's East Indian accent, according to the Trek novelizations.