Rekha at 70: A look at the actor, the enigma and her cinematic and fashion legacy

Rekha and Amitabh Bachchan successful a inactive from Silsila (1981).

For Rekha — who was erstwhile branded an “ugly duckling” — metamorphosing into a singular histrion and ageless quality is hard-earned. If anyone has lived galore lives successful 1 life, it is Rekha, mentioned Simi Garewal erstwhile she was the impermanent of her chat amusement successful 2004. In a vocation spanning implicit 5 decades, she has reinvented herself aggregate times. “Rekha is simply a committed actor. She is agleam and ever unfastened to learning. She has determination, alternatively passion, which is evident successful the mode she worked connected herself and grew successful the industry. She worked connected her Hindi and Urdu erstwhile she was criticised for her accent successful the aboriginal days of her career. The mode she worked connected her connection for Umrao Jaan is amazing,” says seasoned histrion Shatrughan Sinha, her co-star successful respective movies, including the commercially palmy Khoon Bhari Maang.

Only 13 erstwhile she near studies, she was formed successful Sawan Bhadon (1970) arsenic a colony belle, the movie marked Rekha’s archetypal quality arsenic a Hindi movie heroine. The movie was a occurrence and made the assemblage instrumentality enactment of her adjacent though the then-reigning actors, specified arsenic Hema Malini (Johny Mera Naam), Asha Parekh (Aan Milo Sajna) and Raakhee (Jeevan Mrityu), had each delivered hits that year. Still, Rekha was not going to person it easy. “She faced a pugnacious clip astatine the commencement of her vocation due to the fact that of her acheronian tegument and afloat figure. The media and producers were nasty to her. It was the epoch earlier governmental correctness. She was astute capable to recognize that she would person to make her ain brand. Hence, she worked connected her craft, fittingness and created the aura of exclusivity,” says elder movie writer Deepa Gahlot.

Rekha successful a inactive from Utsav (1984).

Calling Rekha a root of inspiration for “her long-standing career, quality to reinvent herself astatine immoderate property and the versatility of her choices,” histrion Richa Chadha says, “Rekha ji is the quintessential Indian performer — arsenic effectual successful some mainstream and autarkic cinema. She is stunning successful wide-rimmed glasses successful Ijaazat (1987) arsenic good arsenic funky costumes successful Madam X. She possesses a large manner consciousness and sensibility. A fascinating superstar of a bygone epoch who continues to radiance adjacent today.” The Masaan and Fukrey histrion besides reveals that she drew inspiration from Rekha for her relation of Lajjo successful Heeramandi.

The archetypal noticeable translation of Rekha came with Ghar (1978). A strikingly slimmer, chiffon sari-clad Rekha won accolades for her portrayal of a intersexual battle subsister struggling to header with the trauma. Talking to Simi, Rekha says: “People thought it was an overnight transformation. At that time, we went connected a starvation diet. I utilized to person elaichi beverage and popcorn for months.” After self-admittedly “sleepwalking” done her aboriginal career, Rekha was by past firmly successful the saddle . Three years later, she delivered an iconic show with Umrao Jaan, which fetched her the National Film Award for Best Actress.

Rekha and Vinod Mehra successful a inactive from Ghar (1978).

The improvement called Rekha was forged by a agelong conflict with adversities that began aboriginal connected successful life. Born Bhanurekha to Gemini Ganesan, a Tamil cinema legend, and histrion Pushpavalli successful 1954, she made her large surface quality erstwhile she was lone six months old. She was thrust into the satellite of Hindi cinema erstwhile studying successful Class IX. “Financially, I had to instrumentality connected the responsibilities. My parent convinced maine to go an actress… All I wanted past was to get married, beryllium loved and person tons of children. I was wholly mislaid successful Mumbai… I ne'er voiced my feelings,” Rekha, who seldom met her begetter portion increasing up, tells Simi. In aboriginal years, her romanticist relationships reportedly resulted successful heartbreaks. Her astonishment matrimony with Delhi-based businessman Mukesh Aggarwal successful March 1990 ended tragically erstwhile helium died by termination and she faced a batch of backlash.

By the clip Umrao Jaan elevated her to the league of India’s cinematic greats, she was already praised for portraying Zohrabai’s melancholy successful Muqaddar Ka Sikandar (1978) and establishing her comic-timing arsenic the spirited Manju of Khubsoorat (1980). Talking astir casting her arsenic Umrao Jaan, manager Muzaffar Ali said astatine Jashn-e-Rekhta: “I saw a photograph of Rekha successful a newspaper. I saw her eyes had a tevar — gir ke sambhal ne wala tevar (the quality to beryllium backmost connected her feet aft stumbling).” In aboriginal years, responding to the praises astir her performance, Rekha, would telephone it a reflection of a definite signifier successful her life. Most likely, insinuating that it’s an result of the rumoured narration she had with her co-star Amitabh Bachchan, with whom she acted successful 10 films.

Rekha successful a inactive from Umrao Jaan (1981).

Once Rekha was superior astir becoming an artiste, she dabbled with mainstream arsenic good arsenic parallel cinema with ease. Her quality of Supriya successful Shyam Benegal’s Kalyug (1981), a modern-day adaptation of the Mahabharata, was based connected Draupadi. In Vijeta (1982) she plays parent to a grown-up son; successful Girish Karnad’s erotic play Utsav (1984) she portrays the relation of courtesan Vasantasena. “The information that she played parent to a teen successful Vijeta, astatine a clip she was playing pistillate leads, shows her eagerness to instrumentality connected roles that she believed in. Prior to that she did a de-glam relation successful Baseraa (1981),” says Gahlot. Baseraa’s manager Ramesh Talwar recounts that helium archetypal approached Raakhee for the movie successful which the younger sister marries the hubby of the elder sister erstwhile the second is comatose. “Raakhee suggested Rekha’s casting arsenic her younger sister. She adjacent telephoned Rekha and acceptable up my gathering with her. Rekha said yes connected our archetypal gathering and aboriginal erstwhile determination was a shooting delay, she was accommodative,” helium says. Sinha, too, vouches for Rekha’s professionalism. “During the shooting of Khoon Bhari Maang, we were not talking to each other. But she didn’t fto that travel successful the way. Years later, we patched up due to the fact that of my woman Poonam, who is adjacent to Rekha,” says the seasoned actor, who has done a movie titled Aaj Phir Jeene Ki Tamanna with Rekha that’s waiting to beryllium released.

Rekha and Navin Nischol successful a inactive from Sawan Bhadon (1970).

Post the occurrence of Khoon Bhari Maang, she went to enactment successful a bid of revenge dramas and crowd-pleasers — Phool Bane Angaray (1991), Insaaf Ki Devi (1992) and Udaan (1997), among others. That besides coincided with her experimentation with costumes and hairdos for mag photoshoots arsenic good arsenic on-screen characters successful movies similar Sheshnag (1990). That marked her emergence arsenic a manner icon. Photographer Jayesh Sheth, who did aggregate photoshoots with Rekha successful the 90s, recalls: “Rekha ever came prepared with an thought for the shoots and adjacent got props. It was ne'er repetitive. It’s her eyes and lips that were astir expressive. I utilized to beryllium successful awe of her energy.”

Chadha says, “The crushed wherefore Rekha ji continues to stay stylish is due to the fact that she has the caput of an creator and is an aesthete who goes beyond however the manufacture tries to specify her. That’s wherefore she stands caput and shoulders supra galore of her contemporaries.”

Rekha successful a inactive from Parineeta (2005).

Sushant Divgikar, aka Rani KoHEnur (all pronouns), believes that successful galore ways, Rekha has redefined manner arsenic “being eclectic and not bound by a peculiar genre”. Divgikar says: “Rekha Maa, arsenic I fondly telephone her, is simply a trailblazer. What I emotion is her unabashed and unapologetic property and the information that she lives beingness connected her ain terms. For a queer idiosyncratic similar me, watching her portion I was increasing up, instilled successful maine a consciousness of aforesaid and courageousness of condemnation to emotion my beingness arsenic authentically arsenic possible.” For Divgikar’s Pari hoon main series successful her debut film, Thank You For Coming (2023), they referenced her look from Sheshnaag (1990) and decorator Rahul Mishra created “a phenomenal outfit” that was adjacent to the 1 Rekha wore connected the film’s poster.

Being an enigma and diva are tags associated with Rekha for decades now. “We person been friends and worked successful truthful galore movies unneurotic but I inactive telephone her a mysterious woman. She has a mystique aura and she is simply a romanticist of the highest order,” says Sinha. In her interviews, Rekha talks successful riddles, particularly astir her backstage beingness that has been a favourite taxable of gossip columns successful the past. She was called bindaas and projected arsenic a badass, making her yet retreat from the media. “She handpicked journalists and gave them photos and quotes astir what she wanted to convey… successful a sense, she created her ain story earlier others did,” says Gahlot, “However, down that facade, she is simply a genuine and lukewarm person. She has an unbelievable memory. Even erstwhile you conscionable aft a gap, she volition retrieve each item of your erstwhile conversation, adjacent your outfit.”

Rekha and Naseeruddin Shah successful a inactive from Ijaazat (1987).

Svetlana Naudiyal, programming director, Asia-Pacific astatine MUBI, believes that Rekha had oodles of ‘rizz’ overmuch earlier this word existed. “For idiosyncratic with that benignant of magnetic allure to suffer herself truthful wholly successful each relation — becoming her characters portion ne'er letting them specify her — speaks volumes of her bonzer talent,” she says. “What makes her bequest genuinely iconic,” Naudiyal adds, “is to person lived a tumultuous beingness unapologetically connected her ain terms—with candour and grace. Rekha’s off-screen persona exudes mystery, passion, and an unshakeable assurance successful who she is. And, perhaps, that is wherefore her ‘rizz’ volition ever stay unmatched.” What amazes Divgikar is that adjacent aft going done a lot, “Rekha inactive stands beardown and doesn’t big a pity enactment for herself”.

It is hard to summarise Rekha’s eventful beingness and a long-storied illustrious career. One of the champion observations comes from Sinha: “Don’t privation to get into her idiosyncratic life, it is gone with the wind. There is lone 1 Rekha successful the industry. She is all-in-one and an institution.”