Untamed, Unfiltered, Unforgettable

Kajol has always broken stereotypes. She continues to turn heads whether on a set, on a cover, or simply walking into a room. The actor talks about loving her age, the icon in her life, work-life balance, and her beauty ideals.

- RASNA BHASIN

When you say Kajol, I vividly remember Mere Khwabon Mein Jo Aaye from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)—21-year-old Kajol wrapped in an off-white bath towel, singing to her heart’s delight.

Growing up, I must have enacted that scene a million times in my bathroom, much to my mother’s dismay as bath time became an elaborate performance. That song still resonates, a reminder of the '90s, of discovering cinema in its most magical form, and of the arrival of an actress who would redefine what it meant to be a star.

Kajol was never porcelain-perfect. She did not fit into the airbrushed ideals that Bollywood held onto so tightly. Instead, she was dusky, fiery, and unforgettable, her unibrow a quiet act of rebellion before we even had the lexicon for it. In Baazigar (1993), she gave heartbreak a face that was raw and relatable. In Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), she transformed dungarees and headbands into every girl’s dream wardrobe. In Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), she made chiffon saris swirl across Egyptian deserts with a mix of glamour and humour that was uniquely hers. And then there were the thrillers like Gupt (1997) and Dushman (1998)—films that felt too dark and complex for me to grasp as a child, but which I now recognise as daring choices, proof of a filmography that defied easy categorisation.