‘I couldn’t believe’: Waheeda Rehman on being conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award

Veteran actress Waheeda Rehman, whose filmography includes a string of blockbusters, was conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Lifetime Achievement Award on Tuesday.

When she received a call informing her about the accolade, she refused to believe it initially. She said that she did not believe she was receiving the award until the Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur took to social media to make an official announcement.

“A girl called me from the government office and I told her, ‘It hasn’t been announced officially. How can I say I am happy? I will be happy, for sure. But it should be officially announced, then only I will say it’s a great thing,” the actress told a publication. “Then, after about half an hour, Mr Thakur announced it, and I said, ‘Yes, I really got it.”

She told another publication, “I was packing to go somewhere, so it was a jhatka for me for a second, and I couldn’t believe.”

The actress further added, “God has been very kind to me. I am happy and feel honoured. Also, I am thankful to the ministry for honouring me with this prestigious award. I am very thankful to my family, friends, fans, and colleagues.”

She told ANI, “In the films I did, I often kept in mind that there should be progressive ideas, women should be allowed to do whatever they want to do because, for centuries, women were not allowed to move forward, study and write. So they were suppressed when they also had talent. I think women have a lot of strength, they have a lot of brains, they can be very successful if they work wholeheartedly.”

Rehman, who has been part of films such as Guide (1965), Pyaasa (1957), Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), Kabhie Kabhie (1976), Rang De Basanti (2006), among several others, was last seen in Skater Girl (2021).