The golden girl of the 70s and 80s, Rekha has many mysteries related to her life. From her much-talked-about affair with Amitabh Bachchan to her wedding with Mukesh Agarwal, Rekha’s life has always been a source of gossip in the industry grapevine. Born as Bhanurekha, she started her career in 1958, and despite some successful films, Rekha got recognition as an actress in the mid-to-late 70s.
Rekha started her acting career at the age of 13 as her family faced financial constraints. Despite being the daughter of veteran actor, Gemini Ganesan, she never got her father’s surname as she was born out of wedlock to superstar, Gemini Ganesan and actress, Pushpavalli. Despite being a successful actress, it was her controversial personal life that always garnered a lot of attention.
Out of the many names she was linked to, her affair with Amitabh Bachchan is still one of the most talked about topics. Though their relationship could not have a happy ending, the actress went on to marry industrialist, Mukesh Agarwal. Soon after their marriage, Mukesh committed suicide. Despite being a widow, Reha still wears sindoor, and over the years, the diva has made it a style statement.
Rekha is always known for making headlines. Back on January 22, 1980, Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh’s wedding ceremony was taking place, and the biggest names in the industry were in attendance. Rekha suddenly made a 'sensational entry' when she entered the venue wearing a white saree and sindoor on her maang. Immediately, whispers started doing rounds at the entire wedding venue. In Rekha’s biography, Rekha: The Untold Story, penned by Yasser Usma, the author describes the entire scene in detail.
The author revealed how the actress managed to steal all the limelight from the bride and groom with her daring stunt, Yaseer wrote:
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“Dressed in a magnificent white sari, Rekha had a bright red bindi on her forehead. But what caught everyone’s eye was the generous dabbing of sindoor in her hair. The cameras instantly pivoted away from Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh, and frenetically photographed Rekha’s curious new look. The dull drone of everyone murmuring and whispering filled the evening air; everyone wanted to know: had Rekha married?”
Not only this, she also went up to Amitabh and started talking to him formally, raising more eyebrows! Talking about how Amitabh Bachchan's wife, Jaya, felt at that time, one of the sources revealed that Jaya Bachchan, who was sitting with her mother-in-law, Teji Bachchan, tried to keep a straight face but eventually bent her head and let the tears roll down.
In the same biography, Yaseer wrote that the diva explained the reason behind her sindoor-clad look at Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh’s wedding. Talking about her look, Rekha stated that she came to the function directly from a shoot. The mangalsutra and sindoor were part of her get-up for the film, and she forgot to remove the makeup.
In 1982, Rekha was honoured with the National Award for her performance in the film, Umrao Jaan. As per a report published in a leading daily, while honouring with the award, Rekha was asked by then president of India Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, ‘Why do you have sindoor in your maang?’ To which, Rekha replied:
“In the city I come from, it’s fashionable to wear sindoor.”
Rekha has been wearing sindoor for quite a long time and has been flaunting the same at every event. In a candid interview in 2008, she was again asked about the reason behind wearing sindoor. She said:
“I don’t worry about people’s reactions. By the way, I think it looks rather nice on me, sindoor suits me.”
Though Amitabh Bachchan and Rekha’s rumoured affair couldn’t culminate, the duo went their separate paths. Amitabh stayed in his marriage with Jaya Bachchan, and Rekha got married to a Delhi-based businessman. Mukesh later committed suicide, and Rekha was blamed for it. Despite all this, the diva has been making appearances, dressed as a married woman, wearing sindoor on her forehead. While most people dismissed it to be Rekha’s unique style statement, Deepali Issar, actor Puneet Issar’s wife believes it to be otherwise. She once revealed:
“Rekha wears sindoor for Big B.”
Despite many rumours and gossip about her sindoor-smeared forehead, Rekha has maintained her dignified silence and labelled her sindoor-clad look her style statement. What do you think about the diva and her zeal for life?
Also Read: Rajinikanth Fell In Love With Sridevi, Went To Her Home To Propose Marriage, Came Back Disappointed
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