AGELESS SIRENS

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In 1998, a slim and svelte 25-year-old Malaika Arora Khan swung her hips and thrust her bosom on the top of a speeding train to the tune of chaiyya chaiyya. With the Badshah of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, for company, the little known host of MTV Style Check and Love Line was suddenly thrown into the spotlight. The same year Malaika married a much-in-love Arbaaz Khan and in an industry where marriage spelt doom, Malaika rejected the arc lights, declaring that she didn’t want to be an actress.
Thirteen years after chaiyya chaiyya, when the 37-year-old Malaika gyrated to the erotic tale of a young Munni losing all virtue, an item number that Sheila and gang have been trying hard to match, men and women couldn’t believe that the diva was mother to the 7-year-old Arhaan.
Pushing 40, Malaika’s survival in the industry as a glamorous model, anchor and item girl, simply cannot be attributed to ‘good genes’. The glam doll has created a certain space for herself and dwells in it comfortably, living life on her terms and continuing to rock despite marriage, child birth or age.
Malaika joins the ranks of glamorous women, the likes of Jane Fonda, Monica Bellucci and Meryl Streep in Hollywood. Closer home, Malaika belongs to the elite group that comprises Sushmita Sen, Shobhaa De, Rekha and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan — women for whom age is just a number. But are these women still under the arc light simply because they don’t look as old as they are? What makes these women of glamour last forever and mature just as fine wine, while the not so lucky others are sifted away like a grain of dust?
Ask 41-year-old Pooja Bedi, model, actress and columnist, on the shelf life of women in the industry, and she answers, “If you’re desirable and look good in front of the camera, you can be sure of a successful innings in the glamour world. However, barriers have been broken by the likes of Sushmita, Aishwarya and Malaika. What constitutes desirability has changed. There are 40-year-olds rocking it in the film business. It all depends on how one projects themselves. Health, fitness, skin care and looking good is extremely important. However, I don’t think that marriage can sound the death knell for a woman’s career or her sex appeal.”
Pooja, who in her twenties was voted sex kitten, believes that she played the part of the sexy glam doll in her youth and has now moved on to more serious projects. But the mother of two insists that age doesn’t stop her from being sexy. “I know I have a good body,” she shrugs. “I enjoy flaunting it. I recently did a bikini shoot for a magazine and had an absolute blast. I don’t see the industry as ageist. I think it has space for all of us. We step into different roles as we go along in time. The industry is available to us as we make that natural transition from sex kitten to sexy mother,” says Pooja.
However, not all would agree with Pooja’s view of the industry, especially not 63-year-old writer and diva, Shobhaa De. About the glamour industry being ageist, Shobhaa says, “We do live in an ageist world, and it can be horribly cruel towards women of a certain vintage. Look at all the nasty barbs Simi’s new show has generated! But there are always the spectacular exceptions — Sophia Loren at seventy plus is still a siren.”
A naked 47-year-old Monica Bellucci graces the cover of Elle France, June 2011, in what is best described as a mouth-watering photograph. Can a female star in India pull off such a stunt? Shobhaa answers, “It’s hard to harbour sexual obsessions for stars who are mothers — it makes men feel very guilty!” She adds, “In India post-menopausal women are treated like cows put to pasture in showbiz. Ageing actors are luckier — they can just switch to playing dirty, old men!”
Celebrity photographer, Atul Kasbekar, CMD Bling Entertainment Solutions, is in concurrence with Shobhaa on age and marriage finishing a female star’s career. “I can’t see a movie being made here that is the Indian equivalent of Meryl Streep in The Devil wears Prada. Actresses have routinely hidden the fact that they are married for as long as they could,” says Atul. However, the lensman counters that the modeling industry is more progressive. “The modeling industry has far more longevity, especially on the ramp. Women can model up till their early thirties. But after marriage their career is pretty limited.”
Supermodel Alicia Raut will soon be in her thirties. The 29-year-old stunner, who is also a single mother, is ambiguous about how much longer she will be around. “The minute I feel that I am no longer required, I will bow out respectfully. I am currently enjoying a good position in the industry and most models work until 35. It’s extremely important to be in shape and give the 25-year-olds a run for their money,” says Alicia.
However, she believes that inequity does exist in India’s glamour worlds. “I was a believer in fairness and thought that the movie business was improving until Aishwarya was dropped from Heroine because of her pregnancy. It’s disgraceful and shows that discrimination does exist.”
Aishwarya, of course, cannot be put down. It’s safe to say that India’s famous international face will be back with a bang after a maternity break. We are sure to see pictures of a slim-waisted Aishwarya, in her trademark shirt and jeans, accompanied by a toddler to a filmi event in the close future.
Why will the likes of Aishwarya continue to rule, while the Rani Mukherjees and Preity Zintas get washed out? Scottish-born, Indian model and actor Milind Soman has an optimistic viewpoint. “There is a demand in different spaces for different kind of women. One can work for however long one desires. It all depends on how you project yourself. Seema Biswas, Dimple Kapadia continue to work on their own terms. You can do whatever you want as long as you know where you want to go,” believes Milind.
One woman who certainly knows where she wants to go has to be 57-year-old stage and film actress Lilette Dubey. The actress, who has done it all from playing a sexy older woman in Kal Ho Na Ho to a trusted confidante in Baghban, maintains that the industry is very driven by looks. The actress who has made a mark on the industry despite entering it only in her 40s, says, “I have stopped fighting the way the industry functions. I have tried to play a range of characters, but it’s impossible for filmmakers to see you as something you are not. The actress’s role here is mostly decorative. Men can continue to woo 16-year-olds even at 55 and Rajinikanth and Amitabh Bachchan are mostly ageless.”
Lilette, who is shooting a Hollywood film with ageless divas Maggie Smith and Judy Dench, believes that unlike in the west, roles are not written for older women in the industry. “Sridevi, Madhuri and Dimple are talented women. But their work is few and far between. There’s no space for a mature woman-centric film. There’s no space for experience and talent,” she laments.
Lilette’s daughter, Ira, who has been recognised as a new cinema actress, wears the sexy tag with reluctance. “Twenty years down the lane I want to be remembered as a working actress. Not as a sex siren. While sensibilities are changing to accommodate all age groups and character-driven films are gaining in popularity, the glamour world is pre-occupied by the notion of looking good. This seems to occupy a lot of consciousness and has led to obsessing about looking young and youthful. This, I think, is very dangerous. It perpetuates the idea of plastic surgery and cosmetic nip and tucks.”
However, well known cosmetic physician, Jamuna Pai, doesn’t see the need for alarm bells to start ringing. “I don’t see what kind of wrong message these women can possibly send. Sridevi, Ayesha Shroff look absolutely lovely. It’s about the spirit — looking youthful and reigning on the top. One must always try to put their best foot forward and this is what these women testify to.”
Jamuna, who confesses to identifying with the age-defying diva, says, “As long as the effects of ageing can be reversed in a safe way under guidance and in full-knowledge of its limitations, I think it’s fine, especially if it’s going to help someone’s career last longer.”
There’s no question that divas like Malaika, Aishwarya, Madhuri, Fonda and Bellucci inspire women and the male imagination. Their insistence to be in the reckoning and not let age be any kind of limitation is certainly empowering. Their inclusion in a project spurs curiosity and sells tickets. Yet, are they missing something? Former glam doll, Nafisa Ali, says nonchalantly, “Glamour bores me.” The former model has set the bar as a diva who has aged gracefully and come into her own with time. “Glamour is not the real world. A mother’s role and a grandmother”s role are far more important. Being an icon as a mother is certainly stronger,” says 54-year-old Nafisa. A decision to bow out at the right time was certainly Naifsa’s choice, but will Munni continue to titillate at 50? Watch this space.