There can be nothing more cruel than time and nothing even kinder. And no one knows this better than Rekha, who turns 59 today. In an sense time has been very kind to Rekha. Her mystique still lives on in the mind and hearts of millions of cinegoers. Unlike many of her contemporaries, Rekha has managed to keep the glamour and the mystery surrounding her alive. She was, is and will remain a true diva forever. But on the other hand, there is nothing more cruel than time. Youth is not forever and before Rekha knew it, there were many other, younger actresses who had replaced her as the leading lady in films.

What has defined Rekha and made her stand aside form the crowd, has been the enigma which surrounds her. One could pour over an entire interview of hers and still not appear any wiser about her. All the posturing and acting has served to define her image as a diva but it has also left her alone, with very few people in her life who she can turn to, and who probably know her as someone other than the dusky beauty, clad in heavy kanjeevarams. Rekha, started with bit roles where all she was required to do was shake her body and then gradually moved on to performance oriented films. Ironically, her journey as an actress actually started with the first film that she did opposite Amitabh Bachchan, in 1975. The film was Dulal Guha's 'Do Anjaane' and for the first time one saw a very different Rekha on screen. The film marked the beginning of the Amitabh Rekha jodi, which today is ranked among the hottest jodis of all times, giving even the likes of Raj Kapoor and Nargis competition. They did many films together, like 'Muquaddar Ka Sikander', 'Suhaag', 'Mr Natwarlal', 'Alaap', 'Khoon Pasina', culminating in the controversial 'Silsila', said to be based on their real life love story. Their real life romance spilt onto the screen as well and they literally sizzled when they came together on screen. But all good things come to an end. Amitabh had that famous accident on the sets of 'Coolie' and after that he is rumored to have promised his wife Jaya, to break all contacts with Rekha. And he is believed to have kept to his promise till date. But if nothing else, the Amitabh episode in her life seemed to have transformed Rekha. From a loudly dressed actress, she was suddenly the epitome of grace and beauty. On the acting front, she suddenly seemed to have discovered the actress in herself and a spate of films like 'Umrao Jaan', 'Khoobusrat', 'Kalyug', 'Basera', 'Vijeta', 'Jeevan Dhara', 'Agar Tum Na Hote', 'Khoon Bhari Maang', 'Ijazat', 'Zubeida' and 'Lajja' followed. The actress prefers to lead a reclusive life today and so the Rekha mystery endures. This much is true, there have been few actresses in Hindi filmdom who have so captured the imagination of the public like Rekha did. On the occasion of her birthday, movietalkies.com would like to wish her a very happy birthday.