Stealing The Scene

Vyjayanthimala did what many thought was impossible for a south Indian actor: take Hindi film dom by storm. Neeti Jaychander studies a brilliant career of over two decades.

- Neeti Jaychander

In the 1951 superhit, Bahar, a fresh-faced 16-year-old made her debut, confidently crooning Saiyaan Dil Mein Aana Re, leaving the audience riveted. The song became a rage, and the actor, even more so. Vyjayanthimala had arrived in Bollywood.

Born in Chennai to MD Raman and actor Vasundhara Devi, the young ingénue had started her career two years earlier with Vazhkai, the Tamil version of the same film, but was clearly destined for a bigger stage. After all, this was the girl who’d performed bharatanatyam at the Vatican City for Pope Pius XII when she was just five! Soon after Bahar, offers and hits started pouring in. In the early ’50s, she straddled the worlds of regional and Hindi cinema, but would soon come to focus solely on the latter. Dr Kamala Selvaraj, eminent gynaecologist and daughter of Tamil superstar Gemini Ganesan, gives us an idea of just how young the star was when she crested the peak. “I first met Vyjayanthimala at the shooting of Thaen Nilavu in Kashmir. The first time I saw her on the sets, she was wearing a half-sari (an outfit worn by young, unmarried girls in Tamil Nadu). My older sister and I had a great time with her during the shoot, which lasted for a month. We played table tennis and used to call her akka (older sister in Tamil). In Kashmir, we stayed in the same house. Every evening, the neighbours arranged a get together and we’d all have dinner. Akka entertained us by singing Ghadi Ghadi Mera Dil Dhadke from Madhumati. She sang so well. We in turn sang Thangathilae Oru Kurai Iruntha, which she liked a lot. The time we spent in Kashmir flew by so quickly. Even after she got back to Mumbai, she kept in touch with us through letters. I know her son, her daughter-in-law and their kids. We are like family. Even now, every time she sees me, she gives me a tight hug.”