‘Bollywood considered Rekha a dark-skinned South Indian actor who had nothing to offer': Kabir Bedi recalls how Rekha became an ‘enigma', proved haters wrong

Indian Express

2 days ago

Kabir Bedi's role in Rakesh Roshan's hit film Khoon Bhari Maang remains one of the most defining performances of his career. He played the part of a hero who turns into a villain and tries to kill his wife (played by Rekha) by feeding her to crocodiles. In a recent interaction, Kabir shared how he was approached by Rakesh Roshan to play the menacing character while he was shooting the Hollywood series Magnum, P.I. with Tom Selleck.
Kabir recalled that although he was initially averse to taking on the role — being focused on his Hollywood project and his career abroad — Roshan managed to convince him to return to Hindi cinema. Roshan had admitted to Kabir that other leading actors had refused to play the sinister role, and the director believed that Kabir would be convincing as a hero-turned-villain. Kabir also spoke about his co-star Rekha and why he readily agreed to do the film with her, saying, 'When I got to know Rekha is opposite me in the film, I said 'done'.'
Kabir revealed that he held Rekha in high regard, as the actor had defied all odds to become one of the top stars in the Hindi film industry. Speaking about the same, he said, 'Rekha was an enigma for me. She had always been reclusive. When she came, the film industry regarded her as the dark-skinned South Indian actor who had nothing to offer. But she proved them all wrong. From an ugly duckling, she became a white swan with her performances. She had established herself by the time Khoon Bhari Maang started, and it was a no-brainer to say yes to a film with her.'
Rekha began her career as a child actor in Telugu films. She went to make her debut as a leading lady in 1969 with the Kannada movie Operation Jackpot Nalli CID 999. A year later, her maiden Hindi film Sawan Bhado released but the young actor, who was a teenager at that point, had to face bodyshaming early in her career.
Rekha kept on delivering acclaimmed performances and won multiple awards and accolades. As Kabir had said in an earlier interview, 'She gave fantastic performances one after the other. By the time we did Khoon Bhari Maang, she was the queen. After that she won the best actor Filmfare award for the film. I have immense respect for her.'
Khoon Bhari Maang also starred Sonu Walia, Shatrughan Sinha, and Kader Khan in pivotal roles. The film was a massive hit at the box office, and Rekha bagged the Filmfare Award for Best Actress for her role.