Pretty as You Please

What amazed me when I first met Dimple was the absence of joy in her life. That certain spark that makes a woman glow. Hema Malini has it in abundance even though she8217;s a second wife with no legal standing. Dimple came to my exhibition in Mumbai and we talked for quite awhile. When are you exhibiting your paintings. I believe you paint quite well,8221; I asked her. So, what do you think Dimple said? 8220;Oh, I8217;m no good at anything. All I can do is act.8221; Complimenting her on her beautiful chunky silver necklace that ran all the way down to her knees did not cheer her up either. 8220;I love silver. Are you fond of silver, too?8221; I asked. 8220;Do I have a choice? That8217;s all I can afford.8221; Does that sound like a truly confident woman of the world? Dimple comes across as a very nice human being, but she is all messed up inside, with fragments of a broken marriage, of a not-so-loyal friend to whom she8217;s given her all today, of a psyche scarred by emotional pain.

The fact that Dimple came to canvass for her husband Rajesh Khanna twice in the sweltering Delhi summer says a lot for her innate goodness. There8217;s not a mean bone in her body. If there were any two people who were completely wrong for each other, it was Rajesh and Dimple. Once Rajesh said, 8220;Dimple was always lovely looking, but brains are an essential requirement too8221;! Dimple is more street-smart than brainy. She can hold forth for hours on designer wear, Vaastu, hair and beauty-care, Raj Kapoor and most of all, Rajesh Khanna. So, what if she does not know who the President of India is? She ain8217;t planning to sit for an IAS exam.

Somewhere Dimple is extremely simple. In today8217;s world, here is actually a woman who is simply simple and yet so wow8217;. Unlike successful urban women who are more often than not shrewd, conniving and superficial, Dimple is straight from the heart, and yet not a soft, simpering fluttering type. She can be loud and bossy, but she will never hurt anyone intentionally. She is, as I said earlier, a bundle of contradictions. 8220;You know I like to sing but, of course, I8217;m no good at it,8221; she said in her typical self-effacing style to a group of women at my exhibition. 8220;Last year, I was asked to sing at Star Nite abroad. As I started singing, people began hooting and booing, but I didn8217;t stop. Then, they started throwing knick-knacks at the stage, but I still didn8217;t give up. I had the determination to carry through what I had started,8221;she said, oblivious to our amazed expressions.

She8217;s a sweet, simple soul who wouldn8217;t know the meaning of guile8217; because guile is something she doesn8217;t have. Having re-started a film career in her late twenties with two daughters in tow, and no husband, marriage or financial security, she reached the Number Two position in no time. Remember the divine diva of Sagar, the Rajasthani harridan of the National Award-winning Rudali or the sensual beauty of Feroz Khan8217;s Jaanbaaz?

But she kicked it all away to pursue Sunny Deol, designer candles her latest obsession and playing cards her oldest and most enduring obsession. What a waste of a fabulous life and an even more fabulous talent. If the much older Hema Malini and Rekha can still make their presence felt on and off the screen, then why can8217;t Dimple? So, with fingers crossed, we wait, wait for a miracle 8212; for the resurrection of the Dimple Kapadia of yore.