Waheeda Rehman was the embodiment of classic beauty with a truly transcendental appeal.

Born into a traditional Muslim family in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, she was trained in Bharatnatyam. Her first film was the Telugu film Jaisimha (1955) followed by Rojulu Marayi (1955), which was a huge success.

She was spotted by Guru Dutt in a song in the latter film and was brought to Bombay and cast as the vamp in his production C.I.D. (1956) directed by his protégé, Raj Khosla. The song Kahin Pe Nigahein Kahin Pe Nishana as she tries to seduce the villain and allow the hero to escape reveal her extraordinary facial mobility and dancer's grace.

She broke through the following year with Guru Dutt's masterpiece Pyaasa in the role of the prostitute with the heart of gold. It was a stunning performance. The way she blended nuances of love, desire and despair as she follows Guru Dutt up the stairs to the terrace to the strains of Aaj Sajan Mohe Ang Laga Lo was amazing. During the making of Pyaasa, Guru Dutt fell for her. And it was ironic that his wife Geeta Dutt's voice was used on Waheeda Rehman the actress as she 'sang' sweet nothings to Guru Dutt on screen.

Kaagaz ke Phool (1959) is said to be autobriographical. In the film Guru Dutt played a film director who falls for his muse. The film was a box office disaster even though some of the poetic moments in the film (the Waqt ne Kiya song) see Guru Dutt do the best work of his life but the inconsistent screenplay and the morbid mood of the film did not go down with viewers. Waheeda of course was brilliant in the film. By now it was said she too had responded to Guru Dutt's feelings for her but Guru Dutt's marital status and her success in films outside caused them to drift apart. In fact unit members say that Waheeda Rehman completed Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962) under some strain. She and Guru Dutt broke away from each other prefessionally as she did not renew her contract with him after the film's indifferent reception at the Berlin Film Festival in 1963 even though it was much acclaimed in India and even won the President's Silver Medal. But to be fair to Waheeda, for all that has been written about her relationship with Guru Dutt, she has always maintained an enigmatic and dignified silence over the entire 'affair' not saying anything even after Guru Dutt's death in 1964.

Meanwhile Waheeda worked with Satyajit Ray in Abhijan (1962), which unfortunately for her was one of the great director's weakest films and consolidated her position as a top star in the Bollywood Film Industry with Bees Saal Baad (1962), a huge hit based on The Hound of the Baskervilles. Strong performances in Mujhe Jeene Do (1963), a dacoit drama and Kohra (1964), a re-make of Hitchcock's Rebecca (1940) followed.

With Guide (1965), she reached the peak of her career. Though the novelist R.K. Narayan on whose book it was based, disowned the film, he had no complaints with Waheeda's performance as Rosie. It was a daring role to play, of a woman who leaves her stifling impotent husband and lives with her lover, a guide who helps her in her ambitions to become a famous dancer. It is to Waheeda's credit that she was able to humanize Rosie to get the viewer's sympathy with her. Whether breaking the metamorphic pot of social constraints or dancing precariously over a ledge in keeping with her dangerous new desires, Waheeda was outstanding in the film.

After Guide, Waheeda's career graph was strange to say the least. Her commercial successes Ram Aur Shyam (1967) and Pathar ke Sanam (1967) hardly challenged her histrionic ability and the films that did so - Teesri Kasam (1966), Khamoshi (1969) and Reshma aur Shera (1971) where she too responded with splendid performances bombed at the box-office. She won the National Award for Best Actress for Reshma aur Shera.

In 1974 Waheeda married Kamaljeet, a businessman, who had tried his luck in films in the 1960s (in fact, he had co-starred opposite Waheeda in Shagun (1964))and failed, and moved to Bangalore. She turned to character roles, often playing Amitabh Bachchan's mother (Bachchan has always cited her to be his favourite actress) but in the 1980s and 90s, she gradually cut down on film work, busying herself with marketing her brand of breakfast cereal while leading a contented life on her farmhouse in Bangalore.

Her last film in this period was Lamhe (1991). (Although a long delayed old film Ulfat ki Nayi Manzilein made it to the theatres in 1994) In Lamhe, director Yash Chopra paid her the ultimate tribute by getting her to dance to her Guide hit Aaj Phir Jeene ki Tamanna Hai! After that she took a dreak from acting.

Eleven years later, she came back, a picture of elegant dignity, playing mother to Anil Kapoor, Fardeen Khan and Abhishek Bachchan in Anupam Kher's Om Jai Jadgish (2002). Her recent films include Aparna Sen's 15 Park Avenue (2005), Water (2006) and Rang De Basanti (2006).