Veteran Bollywood actress Vyjayanthimala celebrates her 91st birthday today. On this special occasion, another legendary actress, Saira Banu shared some throwback pictures on Instagram. The album captured glimpses of the two celebrities having a friendly banter with Saira Banu's husband, and late actor Dilip Kumar. On a note shared with the photograph, Saira Banu recalled a few anecdotes about Vyjayanthimala's life. She highlighted how the Sangam actress became an “Akka” (elder sister) to her. “Wishing my favourite, Padma Vibhushan, Vyjayantimalaji (Akka Elder Sister) a very happy birthday! As I write about her, you will come to know how she became Akka to me. My first memory of her is when I was visiting Mehboob Studios, with my mother, who was visiting her friend Mrs. Akhtar Mehboob Khan. I was thrilled to see such a spectacular song number of "Radha Krishna," where Vyjayantimalaji was swirling in a beautiful Ghagra Choli,” Saira Banu wrote.
Walking down memory lane, Saira Banu shared that she chose not to wash her face after Vyjayanthimala touched her cheeks once. “Next, we met when I started working in "Junglee." She saw me at a film premiere and fondly touched my cheek, saying 'beautiful.' I think I did not wash my face that week! I always loved the pairing of Sahib with Vyjayantimalaji; the pair has given the maximum number of hits together, and my all-time favourite is the classic "Gunga Jumna." She did a fabulous job as Dhanno, and Sahib worked very hard on her diction to record the Purbi dialogues on tape with the correct pronunciations and dialect.”
The veteran actress continued, “There was a certain understanding between Sahib and Akka, and the onscreen chemistry worked in their favour. Akka once quoted that she learned a lot working with Sahib; it was amazing watching him sink into a character and become oblivious of all else. However, once there came an unfortunate misunderstanding between them, and somehow, after shooting for "Ram Aur Shyam" for a few days, she was replaced.”
Saira Banu signed off her nostalgic write-up by revealing how she turned into an “angel” for Vyjayanthimala. She said, “After this smooth sailing, Akka and her son Suchendra would always visit us at home whenever travelling from Madras. Once, there was a complicated issue troubling both of them for a long time, and Sahib and I, with sheer good luck, managed to solve that complex situation completely. Ever since Vyjayantimala labelled me as her 'angel,' and as for me, Vyjayantimala turned into Akka.”
After Vyjayanthimala was conferred with the Padma Vibhushan earlier this year, India's second-highest civilian honour, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met her in Chennai. He shared some pictures from the meeting on X (formerly Twitter). “Glad to have met Vyjayanthimala Ji in Chennai. She has just been conferred the Padma Vibhushan and is admired across India for her exemplary contribution to the world of Indian cinema," he wrote.
Vyjayanthimala was a prominent face in Bollywood in the 50s and 60s. Some of her noteworthy films are Sangam, Madhumati, Naya Daur, Devdas and Amrapali.