Indian screen is not the ideal place for dusky beauties. Yet Rekha (none would recognise her as Bhanu Rekha Ganeshan) has held her sway over it for decades together.
As the lady from Chennai celebrated her70thbirthday on October 10, one would hardly be doing justice to her saying that she has aged gracefully. Rekha had kept seven decades of her age at bay by a smart combination of yoga, aerobics, a strict diet and a joyous mind and of course that tremendous ego boost of a highly successful career.
Unless a really challenging role beckons, Rekha is unwilling to face the camera these days. A private person, she surfaces occasionally in film industry parties and muhrats. Otherwise, her fans have a tough time to catch a glimpse of Rekha. And even if it is a fleeting glimpse, her admirers thank their stars for it. Even if they are of Rekha’s age or more, they swear that she makes them feel younger. Arguably it is in their minds
For their cares and worries vanish once they catch their dream girl in leotards jogging on the sea beach of Mumbai. It has to be very early morning as otherwise there will be a traffic snarl for Rekha is inarguably a crowd stopper.
Essaying a small role in the Telugu film Inti Guttu as a one year old, Rekha appeared to be destined for a film career. Though as a youngster she wanted a flight attendant’s job, she stepped into the world of films unwillingly, the school dropout did not have the foggiest idea that she would be a high flier in the days to come.
Initially Rekha took uncertain and often incorrect steps in Hindi film world. Landing in controversy for a scene she had not approved of in Do Shikari opposite Biswajit fetched her an unexpected dividend as the scene in question ended up in the Asian edition of Life magazine.
Earlier noticed for her performance in Sawan Bhadon opposite Naveen Nischol, Rekha found her footings in what was still called Bombay. But she was uncomfortable with her surroundings if not her co stars.
Not one to push her past under the carpet, Rekha has said that she was dubbed “an ugly duckling” for her dark complexion and yet to turn svelte figure. Arguably her first noticeable performance was opposite Amitabh Bachchan’s in the film Do Anjaane as the hero’s ambitious and greedy wife.
Rekha had earlier shared screen space with Bachchan in Namak Haram but she was paired opposite Rajesh Khanna. If she was unnoticed in the first film with two leading stars, she more than made up for it later.
Portrayal of a newly married woman who becomes a rape victim in Ghar was Rekha’s first claim to fame. She had started late but started with a flourish. It was followed by Muqaddar ki Sikandar opposite Amitabh Bachchan and the Hindi film fraternity became aware that they have most bankable star pair. There can be no other connotation for success in an industry where a hit far outweighed winning international awards.
A clutch of potboilers were released which were no great shakes in histrionic performance but appeared to be like assembly line products. It was at this juncture Silsila starring Rekha, Amitabh Bachchan, his wife Jaya, and Sanjeev Kumar hit the silver screens all over the country.
It was a casting coup which saw Rekha more than holding her own against her co actors each of whom had set individual bench marks by their performance. Silsila turned out to be the last film in which she would share screen space with Amitabha.
Rekha’s performance reached a new high in successive films thereafter even if those were of arthouse genre. In Kalyug directed by Shyam Benegal, she enacted the role of a 20th century Droupadi. But it was more than a portrayal of an epic character. Her barely suppressed yearning for a younger brother-in-law made her stand out from the rest of the cast.
Umrao Jaan saw her in the title role of a poet-courtesan and her performance became a benchmark for future performers and contemporaries. Vijeta, Utsav and Ijazat cemented her claim as an all time great.
In Vijeta she was the mother of an adolescent son, Girish Karnad directed Utsav found Rekha in the lifetime role of Vasantasena oozing sensuality from every pore. Rekha’s performance in Ijazat as a divorced woman meeting her former husband, recalling their marital life and the implosions which led to their going different ways, was the icing on the cake of her acting career.
It was all the more creditable for Rekha as she was pitted against Nasiruddin Shah in this film. Unlike many of her contemporaries, she finds her offered roles of mothers and aunts very occasionally.
She remains the heroine Iiving her life unapologetically with candour and grace. She has reinvented herself multiple times. Rekha may have sleepwalked once in her life and career. But now, she is firmly on the saddle. Looking forward to your next film. (IPA)
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