‘Forty years on,I am still living off Bobby’

The character as well as the story impressed Kapadia from the very beginning. Still,it took some amount of convincing from director Gurmeet Singh to get her to agree. “Sudha Mishra is a delight. But after reading the script,I wondered if I would be able to pull it off. When questions like this come to my mind,I tend to run away. That’s when Gurmeet stepped in,” recalls Kapadia. She also points to the fact that screenplays,narratives and subjects of films have changed for better. This works as a draw for senior actors like her.

Surprising as it may sound,Kapadia often suffers from bouts of self-doubt. “I am very honest,but not self-critical,” she clarifies. Most of the films she features in match her expectations. But she can’t say the same about her work. “I don’t know if other actors go through the same motions. But mine is very pronounced,” she says. Mahesh Bhatt,who has directed Kapadia in Kaash,Kabza and the unreleased Maarg,vouches for her tendency to confront her limitations. “Dimple is an exceptionally devoted actor. Even though she is a stunner,she was aware that good looks alone won’t see her through. She always works on her acting,” says Bhatt. That has not changed over the decades. According to Singh,Kapadia brings in something extra to the sets.

The story of Kapadia giving up her new-found stardom — only six months after the release of Bobby — to tie the knot with the then reigning superstar Rajesh Khanna is part of pop-culture lore. She returned to the movies after more than a decade. By then the innocence of Bobby had made way for sultriness. This was showcased in most of the commercial movies that she did in the ’80s including Saagar,Lava,Arjun and Janbaaz. She veered towards arthouse cinema in the ’90s and even bagged the National Award for Best Actress for Rudaali (1993). “I have experimented with my roles from the beginning. That’s interesting since people appreciate my work. Whether I appreciate my work is a different matter,” she says.

Appreciation for her has come from various quarters,especially from a number of young directors such as Farhan Akhtar,Zoya Akhtar and Homi Adajania who have sought the 56-year-old out with meaty roles. In spite of that,it has been her “pattern to slack off” intermittently. “I was never in the rat race even when I was doing a lot of work. At that time too I used to slow down in between,” she says. Like most,Kapadia is guided by her instincts when selecting a role. But she is quick to add that it is often wrong. “It is a way of life for me. It’s very complicated and I don’t want anyone else to have my mind,”

she says.

Being choosy works to the actor’s advantage. “This allows me time for myself and my family.” Currently her four grandchildren enjoy the privilege of making demands on her time. Since two of them — children of daughter Twinkle Khanna and Akshay Kumar,Aarav (11) and Nitara (1) — live close to her Juhu home,she makes it a point to visit them at least once a day. “Just hugging or kissing them is enough to see me through the day. Since Aarav is grown up now,he objects to such show of affection. Twinkle says,‘You stifle us with your love. You did the same to me and now you are doing that to Aarav’,” says the doting grandmom,with a chuckle.

On a more serious note,she says that having her grandchildren around made it easier to sail through the difficult last six years. “This period has been extremely trying. I have lost very special people in my life. I felt completely abandoned,” says Kapadia. Her husband,Khanna,passed

away last year,and her sister Simple

in 2009.

It has been an eventful 40 years for Kapadia. “When I started on this journey,I did not realise that I am so blessed. Today,I thank god for giving me this opportunity to enjoy this wonderful roller-coaster life,” she says. Though known for gaps in her big-screen appearances,Kapadia has two more releases lined up even as she is likely to sign on another in a week. She has just wrapped up Adajania’s Finding Fanny Fernandes. “Soon,I will be on screen so often that the audience will say: ‘What the fish? She is everywhere’,” says Kapadia,with a smile that still kindles fire.