Last Updated: February 17, 2023, 20:09 IST
Zeenat Aman recently made her Instagram debut.
Zeenat Aman says she really doesn’t care to ‘buttress our society’s idolisation of youth’, and so, unapologetically flaunts her grey hair.
Zeenat Aman, who recently made her Instagram debut, penned a thought provoking note on society’s idolisation of youth. Sharing a photo of herself, she wrote, “As women we are told that our social worth lies in youth and physical beauty. If not explicitly, then in a thousand subliminal ways. This is especially true for the entertainment industry. In general, as we age, men are bequeathed gravitas but women are at best offered sympathy.”
She added, “I was initially reluctant to stop dyeing my hair, and was strongly advised against it. Some well wishers even said it would negatively impact my work opportunities. It was only once I contemplated upon my own hesitations that I realised I really don’t care to buttress our society’s idolisation of youth.”
On a closing note, she revealed that her son clicked this picture of her. “Being young is wonderful, but so is being old. It thrills me to see more and more silver-haired women (of all ages) challenge the status quo. My son @zanuski took this image of me (and my silver bob) a few weeks ago at a friend’s home near Alibag.”
Yesterday, the veteran actress penned a strong worded about her character Rupa from her iconic film Satyam Shivan Sundaram. She said, she was quite amused by the accusations of ‘obscenity’ in ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’. Dropping an old photo of her look test for the film, she recalled being accused of ‘obscenity’ in the movie. “This picture was taken by photographer J P Singhal during a look test for Satyam Shivam Sundaram around 1977. We shot the series at R K Studios, and my costumes were designed by Oscar winner Bhanu Athaiya.”
She shared, “Anyone acquainted with the history of Bollywood will know that there was much controversy and brouhaha about my character Rupa in Satyam Shivam Sundaram. I was always quite amused by the accusations of obscenity as I did not and do not find anything obscene about the human body. I am a director’s actor and these looks were part of my job. Rupa’s sensuality was not the crux of the plot, but a part of it. As it is, the set is not even remotely a sensual space. Every move is choreographed, rehearsed and performed in front of dozens of crew members.”
Revealing an anecdote she shared, “Director Raj Kapoor (Rajji) had brought me on board the film, but was concerned about my “western” image. He was unsure whether the audience would accept me in this avatar, and so conducted this look test. Later, on the basis of this test, we shot a small reel picturised on Lata ji’s famous song ‘Jaago Mohan Pyare’ from the 1956 film Jagte Raho. Raj ji held a screening of the reel at RK Studios to gauge the response of his distributors to me in this role. After that first screening, the rights for all territories were immediately sold.”
