Remembering the iconic star. by Rekha Jad

All of us at one point in life,must have missed out some opportunity , which we had not been looking for or which could be a game changing one,but yet it would have made a life time memorable event.

It was October 2015 ,me and my family  were heading to Jammu,our native place. Being vacation time,heavy foot fall was seen in the Airport and amidst pushing and jostling my hubby and son managed to board the shuttle bus. My daughter and myself were still at the terminal gate ,so we waited for the next shuttle bus to drop us at the runway.As soon as we embarked ,my heart pounded as I spotted a handsome, familiar face standing against the vertical pole of the bus ,right hand grabbing the strap and a swanky De milano hand bag held in left hand,dressed in a blue yellow striped tee and blue jeans,wearing spiffy brown loafers.

With an excitement and delight not less than that of a school going girl,I 

whisper in my daughter's ears,"Is he the super star Vinod Khanna"? She knew,I was an ardent fan of this celebrity, Even at the age of seventy ,his magnetism and charisma was something difficult to ignore,I couldn't take my eyes off,but my daughter remained unflappable and did not show any sign of exhilaration.However,things would have been different,if I was talking about Hrithik Roshan.I tried to relate the debonair of yester years  by telling her emphatically,"He was in Dabbang too," but she didn't give a hoot.This plummets my confidence and I start having misgivings,I feel ambivalent whether it is the super star ,my favorite actor or just a look alike,it has been proven that there is 1 in135 chance of presence of a pair of dopleganger. My head swoons and I feel squeamish,"should I go ahead and ask for an auto graph or request for a picture," But the intimidation of turning into a laughing stock persists.At the same time I feel it a brash insolence on my behalf for not acknowledging my favorite celebrity and not letting him know my love for his work.

As the bus races towards the runway,my heart clamors inside my rib cage,the dilemma continues  and I earnestly wish for some hint from the heavens,but the sojourn comes to a halt ,he gets off the bus with the same charismatic mien as witnessed in movies,s, scurries towards the plane,and seats himself in the aisle seat of first row on left side! And  I too join my husband ,he has recognized him instantly,but unlike me is impassive. I start grousing and grumbling,how I missed  the chance of listening to his baritone,sharing a frame with him ,he gives an impish smile! 

The fifty minutes journey was totally dedicated to the  super star, I begin with conjuring his famous cinthol advertisement of eighties,galloping on a horse clad in denims against an azure backdrop of sky and waves.He looked so groovy and dapper enough to set the female fans a flutter.

I recall his numberless hits , though I was too young then to appreciate his cinematic values of earlier movies,but be it Amar the cop in Amar AkbarAnthony or the charming widower in Chandni,He was a versatile actor with right balance of toughness and romance . Who would not get swayed by his groomed hair,chisseled jaw line,dimpled chin aqualine nose and the most famous lush side burns? He quintessially attained the zenith of stardom with his acting talent and a flair of masochism.His angelic splendour was indeed unputdownable.

As soon as we landed ,he disembarked and strutted out accompanied by local BJP leaders and was whisked into a suv,heading for Vaishno Mata shrine.

Two years later,I come across the picture of Vinod Khanna going viral on social media,shown cruelly and shabbily with utmost insensitivity.He had been suffering from bladder cancer for past few years,but in the Delhi ;Jammu flight he looked fit as fiddle. I feel appalled and squeamish and vehemently object to this invasion in his privacy. The muscled ,burly hunk  morphed into a scrawny,haggard , emaciated,lean and gaunt sloppy man beyond recognition,accompanied by his wife and son. Social media had been very unjust ,his dignity ,grace and charm was snatched away in twilight of his life.He would have loved to leave this world  with an intact  impeccable screen image,but his disease was made a spectacle,his modesty snatched away,how somber and appalling. 

However,Manohar parrekar  (ex Goa Cm)was exception ,he voluntarily appeared in public domain with tubes running through his nose and catheter going down, was criticised and lauded  for this,but personally I was averse to watching his deplorable  and encumbered body in budget sessions and going through files.No doubt a source of inspiration and dedication.

Fame,power, stardom is all epheremal and transient,but the baggage of good memories hang on,still remembering the debonair of Cinthol Ad and brief encounter  with a handsome actor turned politician  with yellow and blue Tee shirt at Delhi airport. But the regret of  not posessing his autograph  and sharing a pic always remains. Can relate little bit with Nida Fazlis lines " faasla  nazro ka dhokha bhi to ho sakta hai,woh mile ya na mile haath badaakar  Dekho"!!