Rekha, the ultimate DIVA of Bollywood, the mere mention of her name brings to mind her kohl lined expressive eyes and her charismatic on screen persona.
Her place in Bollywood has mostly revolved on how she reinvented herself in her career, especially her looks and of course her amazing chemistry with Amitabh Bachchan. The movies that are considered landmarks of her career are either with him; like Suhaag, Silsila, Muqaddar Ka Sikanader or movies like Umraojaan, Khubsoorat or Khoon Bhari Maang. There are heroine-oriented subjects, yes, and she is amazing in them, but then these are films are anyways up Rekha's alley. Given the range of her roles, these are hardly a challenge for her.
There are some movies that are not spoken much about, and even if they are, it some other aspect of the film that takes the credit rather than Rekha. There may be more, but three movies that come to mind; Ghar, Utsav and Ijaazat.
Ghar (1978) has some of the most melodious songs. RD Burman and Gulzar are magical. The chemistry between Rekha and Vinod Mehra is nothing short of a real-life couple. But what draws me to this movie, is the way Rekha plays a rape survivor. It is not often that we got to see a heroine at the centre of such a gruesome act. It is usually the hero's sister who is relegated to this. But Ghar, directed by Manik Chatterjee brought forth the emotional struggle that a woman goes through while trying to live a normal life post rape.
The film's story won a Filmfare Award, and Rekha was nominated as well for her performance.
If you haven't seen the movie yet, you should. You can check it out here.
Utsav was the coming together of two diverse filmmakers; Shashi Kapoor and Girish Karnad. Kapoor produced the movie, based on the Sanskrit play Mrichakatika. The love story of Vasantasena and Charudutta, is an interesting tale rife with romance, comedy, treachery and intrigue. The focus of the film became Rekha's bold scenes and the conviction with which she played Vasantasena was lost to the audience. And the fact the movie didn't work at the box office, did not help the cause either.
But, if you want to see the true diva Rekha, then this is the movie that you should watch.
And here is an interesting piece of trivia. Shashi Kapoor plays Samsthanak, who is the antagonist of the story. This role was supposedly to be played by Amitabh Bachchan. But then the infamous Coolie incident happened, and Kapoor stepped in to play the role.
And then there is Gulzar's Ijaazat. There is so much to say about this movie and yet, all conversations are usually about Mera kuch saaman, the iconic song from the film. RD Burman, Gulzar and Asha Bhosle made this the ultimate heartbreak song ever. But for me it is Rekha who remains the sole reason to watch this movie over and over again. As Sudha, she gives you an imperfect, but a very real and emotional woman.
You have to check this movie out to discover the range of emotions she is capable of.
Rekha continues to make her presence felt in movies even today, though her last appearance was 2018, in a special song in Yamla Pagla Deewana: Phir Se. She is favourite at award functions and of late on talent shows as well. While everyone celebrates the Diva of Bollywood via her beauty, there are some amazing acting gems in her filmography that prove that she is one of the best actresses that Bollywood has had.
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