Anokhi Ada (1973)

September 15, 2016 09:23 pm | Updated November 01, 2016 06:41 pm IST

“Anokhi Ada” starring Jeetendra, marked the arrival of Rekha in the big league.

“Anokhi Ada” starring Jeetendra, marked the arrival of Rekha in the big league.

She has remained an intriguing personality; an enigma that appeals to this generation too. Rekha, the lovable rebel of “Khubsoorat”, the sensuous courtesan of “Utsav”, the daring housewife of “Aastha”, not to forget the protagonist of “Umrao Jaan” in a sterling performance. She has played wide ranging roles and captured the imagination of old and young alike with her ability to slip into the character with ease.

It has obviously been tough to be Rekha. In a film industry that can be cruel and demanding for the newcomers she has emerged with her honour intact. Her unflinching attitude to life, having encountered the hard facts at a very young age, has been a forte. She has tackled the issues by taking them front on, be it her relationships with co-stars and directors or discussing the choice of films she did on her terms.

Rekha’s debut film “Sawan Bhadon” was reportedly thrust upon her — portrayal of a village girl who wants to have her way. She has a mind and follows it. It was a role not tailor-made for her but the Rekha of “Sawan Bhadon” was a pleasant precursor to the Rekha of “Khubsoorat”, independent and not a blind follower of traditions.

When “Sawan Bhadon” hit the screens across the country, the audience witnessed new faces in Rekha and Navin Nischol. A 15-year-old Rekha was pitted against a gold medallist from the Film and Television Institute of India. Nischol was said to be unhappy with the choice of his leading lady but must have later acknowledged Rekha’s contribution to make the film work. Her acting did not have cause heads to turn but she gave enough indication that she had it in her to challenge the top heroines of her times.

There were shades of her characters being repeated in the different roles that she enacted during her film journey but Rekha never came across stale. She was dark, her diction was not perfect, but Rekha was accepted by the industry as an actor to reckon with. She could carry herself with dignity and her versatility was the fulcrum of her longevity in a daunting profession. She did not have a godfather. She did not need one. The success of “Sawan Bhadon”, with an average story and forgettable music, propelled her career.

She had been a butt of cruel jokes on the sets of “Sawan Bhadon”. Obviously she must have been peeved but her rise in the industry had its roots in such incidents where she faced humiliation at the beginning of her career. By the time “Anokhi Ada” arrived, she had become the talk of the industry.

As Yasser Usman narrates in “Rekha, The Untold Story”, Rekha was experiencing a turmoil when shooting for “Anokhi Ada”. She came to realise that Jeetendra was not really serious about their relationship. “The cracks in their relationship were exposed to the public during the shooting of ‘Anokhi Ada’. Rekha and Jeetendra were prone to brawling in front of others. ‘Anokhi Ada’ was completed with utmost difficult. The post-interval love scenes in the film were just put-ons for the benefit of the cameras,” writes Usman.

The film, as such, did not convey the rift between the actors. In any case, Rekha’s role was ornamental and she had to share space with Padma Khanna. There was Mehmood to flip in and out of the narrative but the welcome relief was provided by veteran Kanhaiyalal in a splendid cameo.

“Anokhi Ada” is about two business partners, Lalaji (Nazir Hussain) and Gupta (Manmohan Krishna), who are also very close friends and look forward to transform it into close relationship by engaging their kids, Rakesh (Jeetendra) and Neeta (Rekha) in a wedding lock. The script takes a new course when Gopal (Vinod Khanna) enters the frame.

Drama unfolds when Gopal is accepted as part of the Lalaji family and Rakesh is thrown off a cliff. Gopal takes over the family business, tries to woo Neeta and also succeeds in creating a rift between Lalaji and Gupta. Predictably, Rakesh returns in the garb of Kishan and sets things right.

It was neither a thriller, musical or family drama with a social message but “Anokhi Ada” did reasonable well. Rekha did not have the scope to flaunt her acting skills other than romance with the hero to some lilting music by Laxmikant Pyarelal. A Rafi-Lata duet, “Tere Dil Mein Zara Si Jagah Agar Mile”, and two solos by Kishore Kumar — “Haal Kya Hai Dilon Ka” and “Sundari Ae Sundari” — figured among the favourites of the year the film was released in.

This movie was not about Rekha. Not all. She was a small slice of the story but was set to grow into an exceptional presence on the screen in the times to come. “Muqaddar Ka Sikandar”, “Silsila”, “Ghar”, “Baseraa”, “Ijaazat” were waiting to happen in the distance. But there was something about Rekha Ganesan. She had begun her eventful journey and “Anokhi Ada” was to be a small part of it.

Genre: Drama

Director: Kundan Kumar

Cast: Jeetendra, Rekha, Vinod Khanna, Padma Khanna, Mehmood, Kanhaiyalal, Nazir Hussain, Manmohan Krishna

Screenplay: Mushtaq Jalili, K.K. Shukla

Story: Mushtaq Jalili

Dialogues: Mushtaq Jalili, Vishwanath Pande, Rafi Ajmeri

Music: Laxmikanth-Pyarelal

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanipuri

Box office status: Hit

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