Rekha Felt 'Betrayed' After Co-Star Kissed Her Without Consent During Early Film Shoot
In a disturbing revelation from her early Bollywood days, veteran actor Rekha was reportedly kissed without consent by co-star Biswajeet during the filming of Anjana Safar.
Before she became an icon of grace and resilience, Rekha's initial years in the Hindi film industry were marked by hardship and unsettling experiences. Starting her career as a teenager in the late 1960s, the young actress—born to South Indian cinema legend Gemini Ganesan—moved to Bombay to support her family during difficult times. Despite her lineage, she struggled to find a foothold in Hindi cinema and faced numerous challenges, including harassment on set.
One such incident is recounted in Rekha: The Untold Story by Yasser Usman. The book reveals a disturbing episode from the filming of Anjana Safar (later retitled Do Shikari), which began production in 1969. According to the account, a scene was orchestrated by actor Biswajeet, director Kuljeet Pal, and cinematographer Raja Nawathe, where Biswajeet kissed Rekha on the lips without informing her beforehand. The camera rolled, and the act—meant to be spontaneous—left Rekha visibly stunned and violated.
Biswajeet later admitted that Rekha was 'betrayed and furious," though he claimed the moment was essential to the film and not done for personal pleasure. 'It was not for my enjoyment, but important for the film," he said, as quoted in the book.
Director Kuljeet Pal, however, offered a contradictory version, insisting Rekha had given her consent for the kiss. 'She said she had no reservations… I only told her it would be better if she later said she didn't like it, since such scenes weren't common for Hindi heroines," he claimed.
The controversy aside, Do Shikari didn't release until 1979, a full decade after filming began. Meanwhile, Rekha made her official Hindi film debut with Sawan Bhadon in 1970 and soon climbed the ladder of stardom with hits like Ghar, Muqaddar Ka Sikander, Dharmatma, and Mr. Natwarlal, gradually rewriting her narrative on her own terms.
Today, Rekha stands not just as a Bollywood legend, but also as a symbol of endurance and evolution—her early struggles forming the steel that defines her poise.
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