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Zeenat Aman has become quite the Instagram star.
The veteran Bollywood actress often takes to social media to reminisce about her career, and gives interesting insights into her life and performances.
Her latest post is of a photo from her 1977 film Shalimar.
"I've seen this image of myself floating around on the Internet and thought it would be good to add some context to it," she wrote.
"The cast and crew gathered at the Turf Club in Mumbai for the film's mahurat. It was a packed, high-profile event and everyone was dressed to the nines.
"My glorious, silver gown (right) was created by renowned costume designer Mani Rabadi, based on a design of my own making. Its plunging neckline and sleek silhouette certainly turned some heads. In fact, Mani practically sewed me into the gown to give it that exquisite fit.
"British actor Rex Harrison wasn't at the event but he was in the film. One day on set, he told me: 'A beautiful girl like you should get married immediately.' I had a good laugh over that. And for the record, I think that's a terrible reason to get married.
"Shalimar didn't quite dazzle the audience, but it was a thrilling adventure all the same. We shot the film in both English and Hindi, shooting each scene twice over."
The 71-year-old has posted only about a dozen times - mostly photos of herself with musings on ageing, her eventful career and her pet dog Lily - but her presence has captured people's attention and imagination, reported the BBC.
Zeenat, who captivated Indians in the 1970s with her trailblazing style and unconventional Bollywood roles, described herself as "Actor. Mother. Maverick." on Instagram earlier this month.
But remarkably, she has managed to connect with a much younger audience who have lavished praise on her for sparking a meaningful conversation in the simplest of ways.
As one Gen-Z netizen put it: "The metaverse can be a quiet, graceful space, if you want it to be. Zeenat Aman showed us how."
A successful model turned actress, Zeenat transformed women's fashion in the Indian film industry. She was a trendsetter, experimenting with roles far ahead of their time.
For some, her unconventional beauty, bold fashion choices and outspoken ways were unacceptable. But audiences loved her.
She had a magnetic screen presence, but it was the self-assurance with which she conducted her life - including traumatic personal experiences - that made her even more popular.
Nearly five decades later, Zeenat (left) is no longer the smouldering diva from the peak of her career. But her penchant for starting conversations is unchanged.
On Instagram, the actor is charming and exudes an air of naturalness as she reminisces about her youth and stardom, not through a lens of regret, but simply from the vantage point of being older.
Her thoughts about not wanting to dye her grey hair struck a chord with followers.
"I was initially reluctant to stop dyeing my hair, and was strongly advised against it," she wrote.
"It was only once I contemplated upon my own hesitations that I realised I really don't care to buttress our society's idolisation of youth."
In post after post, Zeenat insists that an older woman does not lose her beauty or agency. "In general, as we age, men are bequeathed gravitas but women are at best offered sympathy," she wrote.
Being young, she added, is wonderful. But so is being old.
"At a time when technology and Instagram filters are rewriting our bodies and faces, Zeenat - with her gorgeous silver bob and soft wrinkles - is sparking a more honest assessment of what it means to be a woman," one fan told the BBC.
"I just love how frill-free and real she is."
Indo-Asian News Service
"I was initially reluctant to stop dyeing my hair, and was strongly advised against it. It was only once I contemplated upon my own hesitations that I realised I really don't care to buttress our society's idolisation of youth."
- Zeenat Aman
