Veteran actor Moushumi Chatterjee, known for her prolific career in Hindi cinema, recently reflected on her dynamic with Rekha, another formidable leading lady of the same era. The two shared screen space in multiple films, such as Dildar, Prem Bandhan, Mang Bharo Sajjan, and Dassi. Naturally, given their stature and overlapping career paths, tensions were inevitable.
In a candid conversation with Filmfare, Moushumi delved into moments of rivalry and emotional friction. She recalled: “Rekha used to think I’m controlling Vinod Mehra’s life. Because she is sitting in his house, and (Vinod’s) mother used to tell me, ‘Indu, Vinod ki cupboard mein se envelope nikal do’ (Indu, take the envelope out from Vinod’s cupboard). So naturally, she used to not like it.” She elaborated further, saying: “Somehow she used to feel Vinod used to listen to me more than anybody else.”
Moushumi also claimed that Rekha’s attitude was occasionally dismissive: “She used to make faces while seeing me, as if she doesn’t care. And once, I approached her and asked, ‘How did you do that? Do it again, in front of me?’ She got nervous. I don’t know if she remembers this.” Recalling an incident on the set of Prem Bandhan, Moushumi shared how director Ramanand Sagar once asked her to remove her heels during a scene: “He said, ‘Woh height ka thoda… woh Rekha barefoot hai’ (It’s a bit about the height… Rekha is barefoot). I told him, ‘I’m a padhi-likhi rich woman. I’m born and brought up that way. Why are you asking me to take off my shoes? You manage, ask her to take a stool.’”
Reflecting on her experiences during the shoot of Dassi, she revealed that Rekha was visibly frustrated with constantly being cast in secondary roles: “She got fed up playing the second woman. She insisted to Raj Khosla, ‘Give me the role of Dassi, I should be Sanjeev Kumar’s wife. Let her do this one.’ I remember all his assistants, Sagar and others, they were laughing. He was a little high when she made that request, so he just said, ‘Mereko poora story change karna padega’ (I’ll have to change the entire story).”
