Today, Feb 3, Waheeda Rehman turns 84!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, WAHEEDAJI! 🥳❤️
(am posting this a few hours in advance, I coudn't wait 😳)
What do I say about this accomplished actress and danseuse par excellence?
She is grace, she is beauty, she is elegance, she is charm, she is dignity, she is warmth, she is talent, she is eloquence, she is intelligence, she is simplicity .... she is all this and much more.
My very first memory of seeing Waheeda on screen was in Kala Bazaar (1960) where she plays the level-headed and righteous Alka. Those were the days when I was crushing big time on Dev and I would usually gloss over his heroines,
with the notable exception of Madhubala (Madhubala was always the notable exception, I suspect she's been my girl crush before I even knew what the term meant!). Anyways, in a movie that was primarily centred around Raghuveer (Dev's character), Waheeda made such an impression on me that I re-watched the movie just for her. And she was mind-blowing in it. The scene where she pulls off her saree to rescue him from the cliffs is still etched in my mind and I remember thinking - wow, this woman is such a badass!
Then I began to 'spot' her in movies especially since I was on a binge-watching spree of all Dev's films and she featured in so many of them - Solva Saal (such a delight!), Roop ki rani choron ka Raja, Baat ek raat ki, C.I.D (wish she was opposite Dev instead of Shakila!), Guide, Prem Pujari and the afore-mentioned Kala Bazar. My brother and I would always have a standard argument on who suited Dev better - Nutan or Waheeda. I would sway this way and that on that choice, but there’s no denying Waheeda and he shared an easy camaraderie off-screen that was very obvious on-screen as well. I did not think of her as a serious actress in these roles.
Then I saw her in Khamoshi and was blown away by her brilliance in it! That movie opened my eyes to her as an actor. Then followed Guide, Mujhe jeene do, Teesri Kasam, Reshma aur Shera. My God - how has she only won one Filmfare award? 😕
Then I watched her as Anjali in Kabhie Kabhie and wanted to punch Amitabh's character in the face (oooh I hated him in that one!), and then in Trishul, playing his mother. Then she played Jaya Bachan's mother in Phagun. And then Abhishek Bachan's mother in Om Jai Jagdish years later.
Her second innings was filled with such graceful performances too! I remember the entire theatre breaking out into wild, spontaneous applause when she unexpectedly hitched her saree up and began dancing to 'Aaj phir jeene ki tamanna hai' in the song medley sequence in Lamhe. Such was the attention she commanded even years after her stint as lead actress was done.
Waheeda Rehman was born in 1938 in Chengalpattu, Tamilnadu in a Muslim, Tamil speaking family. She was the youngest of 4 daughters. For the longest time, I had thought her to be from Andhra Pradesh and Telugu speaking, perhaps because she made her debut in a Telugu movie, but now I realize it was a common misconception. She was trained in Bharatanatyam in Chennai and her dream was to be a doctor, but early tragedy struck with her father's death, and she was forced to cash in on her dancing abilities to fend for the family with her mother becoming ill later as well.
Her first film was Rojulu Marayi and the Kallakapaatam song in which she performed some wonderful dance moves was a huge hit. It was then that Guru Dutt spotted her and persuaded her mother to bring her to Bombay. He cast her in a cameo role as the golden-hearted vamp, Kamini in C.I.D. She was asked to change her screen name then too - I think by the director Raj Khosla, with whom she has confessed to having had more than one major showdown. Those were the days of single names, or names that sound 'sexy' for leading ladies, but Waheeda stuck to her own name and put her foot down. She's said to have put her foot down for some costume and dance move-related suggestions too from Raj Khosla. She would definitely not have been his favorite person and I'm sure he must have been thinking - who's this chit of a girl who dares to talk back to me when she's not even released one Hindi film? Kahan se le aaya isko Guru Dutt ne? 😆
I do recall an interview with Waheeda where she talks about this. If anyone can find it, I'd be grateful if you'd post it and tag me.
Anyways, her Kahin pe nigahein was a huge hit and she simply soared from there on, going on to star in several critically acclaimed films opposite Guru Dutt, a pairing that became somewhat notoriously famous because of their off-screen equation. Their affair is still talked about to this day, and is thought to have brought about the disintegration of Guru Dutt's marriage to Geeta Dutt, though Waheeda herself remains non-committal about it. Still, their on-screen romance was the stuff of legend and to me, Waheeda Rehman embodies the lyrics to the song, Chaudhvin ka chand ho.
Nevertheless, I loved her pairing with Dev the most. And also Sunil Dutt especially in Ek Phool char kaante (such a delightful film!).
She also starred opposite Raj Kapoor in Shailendra's directorial venture, Teesri Kasam where she played Hirabai, the courtesan. And Dil diya dard liya and Ram aur Shyam opposite Dilip Kumar. She's acted opposite most of the leading men from that era and later too - from Rajendra Kumar, and Manoj Kumar to Rajesh Khanna and Dharmendra. Her performances in Reshma aur Shera and Mujhe Jeene do with Sunil Dutt are laud worthy, and she won the National Award for Best Actress for Reshma aur Shera, and a Filmfare award for Neel Kamal.
She married her co-star in Shagun, Kamaljeet, aka Shashi Rekhi and has two children. After her husband's death, she now lives a quiet life in Bandra often hanging out with her BFFs in Bollytown - Asha Parekh, Nanda and Helen. She is also a philanthropist and supports Rang De, India's first peer-to-peer online lending platform.
Once again, happy birthday, Waheedaji and many more to come! You have been and will remain one of my favorite actresses ever!
Please post your favourite Waheeda Rehman songs &/or dance performances on her birthday!
Starting off with 3 of my favorites:
Paan khaye sainyaan hamaro - Teesri Kasam (1966)
Music: Shankar- Jaikishen
Lyrics: Shailendra
Singer: Asha Bhosle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB3aGlSv95I
Raat bhi hai kuch bheegi bheegi - Mujhe jeene do (1963)
Music: Jaidev
Lyrics: Sahir Ludhianvi
Singer: Lata Mangeshkar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg7Ru3NMzlY
Kahin pe nigahein, kahin pe nishaana - C.I.D (1956)
Music: O.P. Nayyar
Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri
Singer: Shamshad Begum
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdPfCr4WC84
Edited by LizzieBennet - 3 years ago
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