Vyjayanthimala Quotes

I was cast as a college girl and that wasn’t really hard to play as I was very young then. I was treated as a child on the sets. When the movies finally hit the theatres, all the newspapers carried reviews that said, ‘What natural acting.'

My first colour sequence was in what was then called ‘Geva Colour’ for the dream sequence in Nagin.

We came from a conservative family, many of whom had never even gone to school. But I was sent to a convent and everyone was very proud that I was educated. So once while I was performing in Madras, a director from AVM studios spotted me. They were looking for a fresh face and they immediately wanted to cast me, and my grandmother grudgingly accepted.

[[w:Raj Kapoor|Raj Kapoor was a true showman. He knew exactly what he wanted from me and Rajendra Kumar in Sangam, whereas Devsaab (Anand) had his own style his own mannerisms. I learnt so much from Dilipsaab especially mannerisms, like the way of delivering my Bhojpuri lines.

The need of the hour is to get people to talk to each other and to clear the air. I don't approve of fusion in art, but I definitely approve of it in the field of politics.

There were no acting schools or workshops then. What came naturally to you, is all you had. But Bharata Natyam taught me everything.

There were so many different characters that I have played. Radha in Sangam was a very sophisticated woman and the setting was very refined, while in Dhanno in Gunga Jumna was rustic, a village belle. Even the language was different.

I always cribbed about having such a long name and my grandmother would say that nobody else will be called ‘Vyjayanthimala'.

aAs a creative artiste dedicated to a spiritual art form I was deeply pained by the communal violence in Gujarat.

As it is, being a South Indian I used to say my own lines and everybody marveled at it, and then to learn Bhojpuri... Dilipsaab was very helpful.

If Bharatanatyam helped my movies, I cannot say the same about films helping my Bharatanatyam.

She says she was the only south Indian actress who could speak Hindi without a South Indian accent, at the time.

I think I was born to dance. That’s what my grandmother told me. So it was always in my system.

In those days, dances were dances and songs were songs. Film dances always had a semi-classical or folk element to them and songs were all about soul-stirring lyrics and haunting music. These days, they are more about technique and technology, often it's the camera that's dancing, the synthesiser that's singing. Not my cup of tea.

But first I was made to learn music, because music and dance go together. You can sing, but you can’t dance without music...