Bollywood has always given female actors a small bracket in which they can play lead roles. And once they go over 40, they are expected to take on the roles of mothers and sisters. While their male counterparts go on to romance women half their age. From Waheeda to Sharmila Tagore, there are female actors who have played both mothers and wives / lovers to the same male actors.
1. Amitabh Bachchan & Sharmila Tagore
While in the 2005 movie Viruddh 61-year-old Sharmila and 63-year-old Amitabh played husband and wife, maybe because Amitabh had finally begun taking on ‘fatherly’ roles. But 38-year-old Sharmila played 40-year-old Amitabh’s ailing mother in the 1982 film, Desh Premee.
2. Amitabh Bachchan & Rakhee Gulzar
The two played the iconic duo in love in the 1976 romance, Kabhi Kabhie where Amitabh was 34 and Rakhee was 29. However, in the 1982 Bollywood drama, Shakti 35-year-old Rakhee played 40-year-old Amitabh’s mother. How typical Bollywood.
3. Amitabh Bachchan & Waheeda Rehman
Trishul (1978), Namak Halal (1982), and Coolie (1983) are just some of the films in which Waheeda played Amitabh’s mother. But they all happened after Waheeda turned 40, because before that she played Amitabh’s wife in movies like Kabhi Kabhie, the two played husband and wife when Waheeda was 38-years old and Amitabh was 34.
4. Nargis & Sunil Dutt
In the iconic film, Mother India, 28-years-old Nargis played the role of Sunil Dutt and Rajendra Kumar’s mother, who were the same age as her. Later, Nargis and Sunil Dutt tied the knot and she also played his wife in the 1964 film, Yaadein.
5. Rajinikanth & Sridevi
Moondru Mudichu, which released in 1976 had a 13-year-old Sridevi playing the step-mother of 26-year-old Rajinikanth. And then in the 1989 Bollywood film, ChaalBaaz, a 26-year-old Sridevi starred opposite 39-year-old Rajinikanth as his love interest.
Which couple surprised you the most?