When Rekha’s school friends made fun of her dreams of becoming movie star: ‘Shaqal dekhi hai?’

Having entered the film industry as a child artist, Rekha climbed up the ladder of success one blockbuster at a time only to become one of the most popular Bollywood stars in the 1970s and 1980s. She starred in hits such as Silsila, Umrao Jaan, Khubsoorat and Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, to name a few.

However, Rekha had once revealed that her school friends didn’t believe in her dreams of becoming a big actor. During her appearance on Rendezvous with Simi Garewal, Rekha revealed the impact of Saawan Bhadon’s success on her life when she mentioned her friends.

“I was happy as I was getting all the importance and attention. My sisters were very happy too, my mother was very happy. We could buy all the cars and the house. And what’s more, my school friends were really envious because when I would say to them who knows maybe I will be a star tomorrow, and they would say, ‘achha, apni shaqal dekhi hai aaine mein? (Really, have you seen your face in the mirror?)’ and they didn’t know where to look (after my first film was a hit) as they said, ‘Bhanu’s made it after all,'” she said, referring to her birth name Bhanurekha.

In the same interview, she also revealed she never wanted to be an actor at the age of 13. “No, Never. At that point, all I wanted was to be married and to be loved and to spend the rest of my life with somebody who truly truly truly cared for me and have children. Lots and Lots and lots of children. I wonder why I felt like that then. But that’s what she (Bhanurekha) wanted,” she said.

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In recent years, Rekha has starred in a handful of films. The actor played Hrithik Roshan’s mother in Koi Mil Gaya and reprised the role in Krrish. She then starred in Super Nani and had a small role in Amitabh Bachchan and Dhanush’s Shamitabh.