 Waheeda Rehman was the
embodiment of classic Muslim beauty with
a truly transcendental appeal.
Born into a traditional Muslim family in
Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, she was trained
in Bharatnatyam. Her first film was the
Telugu film Jaisimha (1955) followed
by Rojulu Marayi (1955), which was
a huge success.
She
was spotted by Guru Dutt
in a song in the latter film and was brought
to Bombay and cast as the vamp in his production
C.I.D. (1956)
directed by his protégé, Raj Khosla.
The song Kahin Pe Nigahein Kahin
Pe Nishana as she tries to seduce the
villain and allow the hero to escape reveal
her extraordinary facial mobility and dancer's
grace.
She broke through the following year with
Guru Dutt's masterpiece Pyaasa
in the role of the prostitute with the
heart of gold. It was a stunning performance.
The way she blended nuances of love, desire
and despair as she follows Guru Dutt up
the stairs to the terrace to the strains
of Aaj Sajan Mohe Ang Laga Lo was
amazing. During the making of Pyaasa,
Guru Dutt fell for her. And it was ironic
that his wife Geeta Dutt's
voice was used on Waheeda Rehman the
actress as she 'sang' sweet nothings to
Guru Dutt on screen.
Kaagaz ke
Phool (1959) is said to be autobriographical.
In the film Guru Dutt played a film director
who falls for his muse. The film was a box
office disaster even though some of the
poetic moments in the film (the Waqt
ne Kiya song) see Guru Dutt do the
best work of his life but the inconsistent
screenplay and the morbid mood of the film
did not go down with viewers. Waheeda of
course was brilliant in the film. By now
it was said she too had responded to Guru
Dutt's feelings for her but Guru Dutt's
marital status and her success in films
outside caused them to drift apart. In fact
unit members say that Waheeda Rehman completed
Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962) under
some strain. She and Guru Dutt broke away
from each other prefessionally as she did
not renew her contract with him after the
film's indifferent reception at the Berlin
Film Festival in 1963 even though it was
much acclaimed in India and even won the
President's Silver Medal. But to be fair
to Waheeda, for all that has been written
about her relationship with Guru Dutt, she
has always maintained an enigmatic and dignified
silence over the entire 'affair' not saying
anything even after Guru Dutt's death in
1964.
Meanwhile
Waheeda worked with Satyajit
Ray in Abhijaan (1962), which
unfortunately for her was one of the great
director's weakest films and consolidated
her position as a top star in the Bollywood
Film Industry with Bees Saal Baad (1962),
a huge hit based on The Hound of the
Baskervilles. Strong performances in
Mujhe Jeene Do (1963), a dacoit drama
and Kohra (1964), a re-make of Hitchcock's
Rebecca (1940) followed.
With Guide
(1965), she reached the peak of her
career. Though the novelist R.K. Narayan
on whose book it was based, disowned the
film, he had no complaints with Waheeda's
performance as Rosie.  It
was a daring role to play, of a woman who
leaves her stifling impotent husband and
lives with her lover, a guide who helps
her in her ambitions to become a famous
dancer. It is to Waheeda's credit that she
was able to humanize Rosie to get the viewer's
sympathy with her. Whether breaking the
metamorphic pot of social constraints or
dancing precariously over a ledge in keeping
with her dangerous new desires, Waheeda
was outstanding in the film.
After Guide, Waheeda's career graph
was strange to say the least. Her commercial
successes Ram Aur Shyam (1967) and
Pathar ke Sanam (1967) hardly challenged
her histrionic ability and the films that
did so - Teesri Kasam
(1966), Khamoshi (1969) and Reshma
aur Shera (1971) where she too responded
with splendid performances bombed at the
box-office. She won the National
Award for Best Actress for Reshma aur
Shera.
In 1974 Waheeda married Kamaljeet, a businessman,
who had tried his luck in films in the 1960s
(in fact, he had co-starred opposite Waheeda
in Shagun (1964))and failed, and
moved to Bangalore. She turned to character
roles, often playing Amitabh Bachchan's
mother (Bachchan has always cited her to
be his favourite actress) but in the 1980s
and 90s, she gradually cut down on film
work, busying herself with marketing her
brand of breakfast cereal while leading
a contented life on her farmhouse in Bangalore.
Her last film in this period was Lamhe
(1991). (Although a long delayed old
film Ulfat ki Nayi Manzilein made
it to the theatres in 1994) In Lamhe,
director Yash Chopra
paid her the ultimate tribute by getting
her to dance to her Guide hit Aaj
Phir Jeene ki Tamanna Hai! After
that she took a dreak from acting.
Eleven years later, she came back, a picture
of elegant dignity, playing mother to Anil
Kapoor, Fardeen Khan and Abhishek Bachchan
in Anupam Kher's Om Jai Jadgish (2002).
Her recent films include Aparna
Sen's 15 Park Avenue (2005), Water
(2006) and Rang De Basanti (2006).
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