REKHA SABNIS ,HINDI ACTRESS BIOGRAPHY

 

REKHA  SABNIS ,HINDI ACTRESS BIOGRAPHY

I first saw her at Taddev's Talamkiwadi .. at the wedding of my distant sister (and Deepa Shriram's older sister) at Kanchan's wedding. I was then thirteen or fourteen years old. While walking around the tent in the form of a silk skirt with a polka dot, a veil on it, two thick strands of hair, she suddenly caught my eye in the company of Kanchanakka's friends. Wearing a black moon, wearing traditional, beautiful ornaments, the young woman was so attractive that I could not take my eyes off her. The imprint of her image on my schoolgirl's mind is forever! Unable to identify myself, I inquired and someone said, 'She is Kanchan's 'Queen Mary' classmate from school .. Rekha Sabnis.'

When I went to college a few years later, I heard Rekha's name from the mouths of Elphinstone's former Marathi students, who were always camping in Xavier's canteen. She works from Elphinstone's Marathi plays, from her one-act play in an intercollegiate drama competition to the time when a huge crowd erupts at Churchgate's 'University Club House', and so on. Since I was more interested in table tennis than drama in those days, I used to listen to these stories just for fun. But later when I heard that Rekha teaches in ‘Elphinstone’ with an MA in a subject like Sanskrit, and also works in Sanskrit drama with Daji Bhatwadekar, I was amazed to realize that she has not only form but also intellect and artistic qualities!

When I entered the theater unit, we met in person at Walchand Terrace. Satyadeva already knew Dubey Rekha. Like me, she used to turn in 'Walchand' even when she was not in the play. She used to wear Georgette's sari, blouse and ornaments of perfect color, in the dress of such a sophisticated woman, but as soon as the concert started, she would splash her hands on the dusty ground without spilling the wine. Definitely 'Bohemian'! The first time I saw her change (because it didn't fit in my experience), I cried, but I was fascinated by it many times over. In fact, Evanna was shocked by my preconceived notions. Due to the intrusion of the norms, traditions and customs of the patriarchal society, my desire to get rid of them was getting stronger, but since childhood, the image of myself as a 'wise, obedient girl' was being cultivated without knowing it. I used to be amazed at how easily Rekha does things that I don't like! She never cared what society said or what people said. She lived her life according to her own rules and desires .. without getting entangled in any bondage! And, despite living an independent, carefree life, she kept the blood and friendship ties tight. She kept adding new relationships.

Rekha had a role in the play 'Vallabhpurchi Dantakatha' directed by Amol. Although I was not in the play, I met her when I went to the gym. We came close in a real sense during the play 'Asanch Ek Gaav' produced by Rekha's 'Abhivyakti'. It was a Marathi adaptation of an American play called 'Our Town'. As soon as Rekha offered me the lead role, I was ready on one foot. She played the role of her mother, Laxmikant Berde's younger brother, and Dilip Kolhatkar as the narrator. This time I got to see a different form of the line. There were many big and small characters in the play. People came late to the rehearsals in Girgaum, director Ashok Sathe used to get very annoyed when someone hit him; The line was expected to make sense to them. But our creator is calm .. in today's language 'child'! At one point, she forgot the training time herself and the director got angry and left without training. Despite the fun behind the scenes, the play went well and we won all the awards that year. The joke is that twenty years later, when Rekha and I worked with Nina Kulkarni and Dilip in Girish Karnad's play 'Nagmandal' directed by Dilip Kulkarni, Rekha was still 'child' (so poor Dilip's and our blood pressure often went up!) There is no doubt that Rekha contributed a lot to Marathi experimental drama in all aspects like translation, production, directing, acting. Faced with difficulties, she ran the ‘Expression’ organization for many years; Karnad's play 'Yayati' by Dr. I did it in Marathi with Lagoon; Kiran Nagarkar's plays like 'Bedtime Stories'; Also always encouraged young directors, new amateur actors. I didn't get the chance to work on 'Abhivyakti' again after 'Asanch Ek Gaav', but we kept on remembering each other's plays. During the first experiment of the new experimental play, we continued to meet at the next party.

Directed and produced by Dubey, 'Dhadasi Dhonduchya Dhandali' was our work. The play, originally titled 'Sofa-cum-Bed', sparked controversy over ethical issues such as 'compromise with censorship', 'parallel production', etc. What exactly was Rekha's role in this - she listened to both sides and tried to reconcile them with the people on both sides.

Rekha Sabnis is an actress and assistant director, known for Ondanondu Kaladalli (1979), The Square Circle (1996) and Unimaginable (1981).

Rekha Sabnis in a still from Shyam Benegal's Bhumika (1977)

Late actress Rekha Sabnis was a Marathi/Hindi stage and film actress, who has worked in critically acclaimed films such as Ashadh Ka Ek Din, Bhumika, 27 Down and Ondanondu Kaladalli (Kannada). She was an assistant director too. She ran a theater group 'Abhivyakti' from her house. She was well versed in different languages - Marathi, Hindi and Sanskrit.

The actress passed away in September 2016 at the age of 74.