Zeenat Aman: The bold and the beautiful muse of Bollywood

[If your desires are strong then they are free... and even strength comes from freedom and not from restriction] - Zeenat Aman in the film 'Ishk Ishk Ishk' (1974)

The exuberance of progressive female characters in Indian cinema can be credited to a long list of actresses. But, it is certainly the aura of the greatest seductress and the ultimate muse of Bollywood - Zeenat Aman, that will perhaps be regarded amongst the best. Her effect on cinema is so phenomenal that she today is regarded to be one of the many actresses who revolutionized the portrayal of Indian women in Bollywood.

Zeenat Aman ruled the silver screen, like she is the muse of Bollywood, for almost two decades. She portrayed those characters which were not only out of the box but something which the other actresses never dared to take up. Her name was enough to evoke desire and inklings, amongst her male and female followers alike. Zeenat chose to break the stereotype.

Instead of portraying the image of a doting wife, a loving daughter or a selfless sister, Zeenat represented those characters which were the independent, opinionated individual of a rational society.

Born of an Anglo Indian mother and a father of Afghan descent, Zeenat took the nom de plume of her writer father 'Aman'. Thanks to her upbringing, Zeenat was both well read and well dressed and soon landed up an internship with a fashion house in Mumbai. Finally, in 1970, she kick-started her career in the glamour world with immense success. Not only had she won the Femina Miss India pageant but also had been victorious at the Miss Asia Pacific International, all at the age of 19.

Owing to her astonishingly fresh looks, she first bagged an ad campaign and then a film role in Hungama (1971). Unfortunately, the film tanked without much mention. Perhaps, Zeenat was set for a grander start.

Zeenat’s impressive performance made her win both the Best Supporting Actress Award and the Bengal Film Journalists’ Association Awards (BFJA) award.

Hare Rama Hare Krishna went on to become her first big break. The chemistry between Dev Anand and Zeenat Aman clicked so well that she was signed for seven films, and four out of them turned to be blockbusters. Her charisma continued to overwhelm the audience with songs like Chura liya hai tumne jo dil ko in the movie Yaadon Ki Baarat (1973). Zeenat’s bewitching qualities and Asha Bhonsle’s melodious voice concocted an intoxicating frenzy for the entire nation. Once, she had a taste of her success she went onto take bolder roles.

With Raj Kapoor’s Satyam Shivam Sundaram(1978), she and her director both shot to criticisms. But, Zeenat’s story is a classic tale of defying the odds and coming out victorious like a princess. So even though Raj Kapoor's Satyam Shivam Sundaram did not do well at the theatres, it got her the Best actress Filmfare nomination, for her unorthodox choice for a role. Furthermore, she was lapped upon with appreciation for her bold performance in the kissing scene with the lead in the film.

[When a heart breaks there is no sound ... but with that earthquakes come, the sky tears apart, the world gets destroyed] - Zeenat Aman in the film 'Satyam Shivam Sundaram' (1978)

Zeenat was now more popular as the bombshell and the classic femme fatale of Bollywood. So she experimented with her image to another level altogether.

In Don (1978), she was depicting the ultimate seductress coupled with the thirst for revenge. Her character was westernized at the core, she had now transformed into an action heroine, a kind of a character which many female actors of her time, would follow and perfect forever thereafter. Her love for the roles and the process of film-making was unadulterated, one of the instances is this film itself. She apparently did not even ask for her remuneration for her part in the film. It was her noble gesture to help out Nariman Irani, who died filming it.

From Dharam Veer (1977), Chhailla Babu (1977) and The Great Gambler (1979), Zeenat became the synonym of success in Bollywood. She was successful both in the conventional space as well as the richer and complex character scapes.

Zeenat was representing the avant-garde woman of India, who is not the very breed of typical, righteous, run-of-the-mill lovers or wives. It is interesting that her choice of roles had a high range of complexities and shades despite their social standings being outrightly questionable to some.

Zeenat let her role of the independent young woman capitalize upon the narrative of the story.

She would turn into an absolute gold digger by dumping a poor lover to pursue a rich magnate in Roti Kapda Aur Makaan (1974), or she could just contemplate an abortion at the cost of her career in Ajnabee (1974).

She can even turn out to be the hippie singing Hare Krishna Hare Ram and yet, she could be the girl who falls in love with her mother’s lover in Prem Shastra (1974). And that is not all, she can even turn out to be outrageously brave enough to be in an extramarital relationship, despite being married to a physically challenged person in Dhund (1973). Zeenat became the epitome of versatility, every single time she came on screen.

Zeenat’s influence transpired beyond the reel to the real as well. She actually began a new trend in the industry by launching the careers of many male actors. This was not only unlikely but also unthinkable of most Indian actresses at the time.

Be it the unknown Raj Babbar, Deepak Prashar or even Tariq Ali, Zeenat had never shied away to explore the unknown.

From Insaf Ka Tarazu (1980) with Raj Babbar and Deepak Prashar, to Kanwaljeet Singh in Ashanti (1982) and Tariq Ali in Hum Kissi Se Kum Nahin (1977) and Yaadon Ki Baarat (1973), Zeenat had always been daring enough to face the challenge of sharing the screen with a lesser known actor. The fear of failure never bothered her so much.

[Incomplete dreams prick a lot ... their pricking hurts a lot] - Zeenat Aman in the film 'Bandhan Kuchchey Dhaagon Ka' (1983)

From Filmfare to Star&Style or Stardust, Zeenat became the cover girl of almost every Entertainment magazine in the ‘70s. In 1974, the famed magazine CineBlitz was actually launched with Zeenat Aman on the cover. The glamour and fanfare for the roles she portrayed on screen had brought her so much fame and glory that for the first time, the audience had almost no problems in accepting the role of unconventional women in the popular media.

Thus, she inspired many reigning diva of conventional plots and storylines to take up more challenging roles in films.