Born out of wedlock, abandoned by father, serially abused in Bollywood, she became industry’s biggest female superstar

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But while her father was cavorting with other women, Rekha’s mother was left to fend for herself. “Though he never lived with us, we “felt” his presence wherever we went, for whatever we did. My mother constantly spoke about him, his likes and dislikes. Whatever you wish to call it – love or affection – the feeling my mother had towards him was strong and positive that lasted throughout her life,” Rekha told her half-sister Narayani.

Actor Rekha poses for a photograph. Express Archive

In her early teens, Rekha attempted to take her own life. She was revived by the doctors, but Pushpavalli put her foot down. She gave her the option of either getting married, or trying her luck as an actor. It was decided that she’d give films a shot, although she didn’t receive any support from her father. Plus, the entire industry knew who she was, and many refused to work with her fearing Gemini Ganesan’s wrath. Her name was associated with infidelity. She knocked at every door that she could for an opportunity, and she was only 14 at the time. “I was pulled out of the ninth class and made to work when I was 14. At that time it made no sense. I was the pampered child of the family, always given everything I wanted. It seemed to me that we were happy and certainly well-off. I was not to know how much in debt my mother was till much later. So the idea of working in films did not appeal to me at all. I used to refuse to go to the sets and occasionally my brother beat me up,” Rekha told Bombay Magazine in 1986.

“She was 13 or 14 when I did some ad films with her. She didn’t know Hindi and yet she was in the Hindi film industry for some reason. But I can never forget that spark in her eyes and the confidence she had in front of the camera. That was something,” director Shyam Benegal said about Rekha in Yasser Usman’s unauthorised biography.

Actor Rekha poses for a photograph. (Express Archive)

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After her career didn’t take off in the South, Rekha agreed to move to Mumbai and give Hindi films a shot. She was signed by the Nairobi-based businessman Kuljeet Pal, who’d spotted her once at Gemini Studios. She was given an eight-film deal, with Rs 25,000 for the first film, and a Rs 25,000 increment for each successive project. “When I met this dark, plump girl who was playing a small role in a south film, I had an intuition that she would be a star. So, that very night, I met her mother Pushpavalli and signed her daughter on for a five-year contract,” Kuljeet said in a 1979 interview with Jitendra Kothari. “Her mother was very pleased when we came with her first Hindi offer. They were deep in debt. The mother kept asking for money saying, ‘the Kabuliwala is after me.’ Only later I realised she meant those Pathans who lend money at exorbitant rates.”

In an interview with Movie magazine, Rekha recalled, “When I was offered Hindi films, my mother said that not only was it a chance of a lifetime, but that we needed the money. So Iagreed.” It was during this time, when she was finding her way in a strange new city populated by people whose language she didn’t speak, that she was reportedly abused. Journalist Jerry Pinto told Usman, “Rekha could sketch out her journey from a child who came to Bollywood, who went through serial abuse at the hands of producers and film stars and directors, etc. Startling things where she talks about being a child and how people laughed at her.”

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Recalling her reluctance to do films at the time, Rekha told Simi Garewal in 2004 that she felt like an object as she slaved away against her will in the harsh world of films. She said, “‘Bombay was like a jungle, and I had walked in unarmed. It was one of the most frightening phases of my life… I was totally ignorant of the ways of this new world. Guys did try and take advantage of my vulnerability. I did feel ‘What am I doing? I should be in school, having an ice-cream, fun with my friends, why am I even forced to work, deprived of normal things that a child should be doing at my age?’ Every single day I cried, because I had to eat what I didn’t like, wear crazy clothes with sequins and stuff poking into my body. Costume jewellery would give me an absolute terrible allergy. Hair spray wouldn’t go off for days even despite all my washing. I was pushed, literally dragged from one studio to another. A terrible thing to do to a 13-year-old child.”

Bollywood actor Rekha before taking oath as a Rajya Sabha member in New Delhi. (Express Archive)

While working on her first film, her co-star Biswajeet concocted a plan to assault her while the cameras were rolling. Without telling her first, he planted a kiss on her lips, and didn’t let go for five minutes. The crew hooted and hollered as Rekha cried. “Rekha was there. She said that she has no reservations against a kissing scene. She said she would do it. I know she now says that she was taken by surprise when Biswajeet kissed her. I only told her that since she is doing something which Hindi film heroines don’t, it will be better if she said she absolutely did not like it. But she knew about this scene in all cases,” Kuljeet said in an interview.

The film in question wasn’t released until a decade later, and by then, Rekha had established herself in the industry. She made her Hindi film debut with Sawan Bhadon in 1970. She was then seen in popular films like Dharmatma, Ghar, Muqaddar Ka Sikander, Mr Natwarlal across the decade. She remains best known for films such as Silsila, Khoon Bhari Maang, and others.