Back in February 2023, Zeenat Aman made her debut on Instagram. After posting just a couple of pictures added with captions which gave a slight peek into her life, her account became widely popular amongst the young audience. Why was that? Because amidst promotional posts, luxury handbags, makeup hauls and vacation pictures in exotic locations, Zeenat Aman stood out as real, unapologetic, and personal.
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Her posts were a testament to the fact that she was not on Instagram to make a ‘comeback’ or promote products or become an influencer/online content creator, like so many actors have become after falling out of the film industry. No, she posted on Instagram to share snippets from her life and speak her mind. It’s as simple as that. And that graceful ‘simplicity’ is what is lacking on social media nowadays.
Her popularity amongst the young and global audience has now reached unfathomable heights. We not only see her as a fashion icon but also really READ what she has to say. And she says, whatever she says, well. It is not scripted; it is her raw and real self talking.
So, at the age of 71, Zeenat Aman graced the Vogue cover again – only this time, she not only posed for pictures wearing designer clothes and accessories but also wrote an entire column about her life.
Her words move you. Her intellect surprises you.
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“I didn’t realise how much being able to publicly speak my own truths would delight me. As a leading actor in the ’70s, I was always a subject of conversation, but almost never on my own terms. The gossip and perceptions could be suffocating, and there was rarely recourse to set the record straight. On Instagram, I have found the freedom to express myself. It’s liberating,” she wrote.
“There was far more interest in my face and figure than there ever was in my intellect,” she added.
Zeenat studied at Saint Joseph’s Convent, Panchgani and was the Head Girl. She was brilliant at studies and never wanted to settle for the 2nd position. After winning the ‘runner-up’ position at Miss India in 1969 and losing a chance to compete at Miss World, she was determined to win Miss Asia Pacific, and so she did. She then entered the fashion and film industry and we all know what happened after that.
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With time, her priorities shifted. After years of performances and shifts, her life became hollow and she began desiring something that was entirely her own. The birth of her two sons gave her that. Soon, work offers dwindled and faded. But thanks to her early fame, she had enough to keep her “kitchen running”.
“I’m not surprised, then, that my appearance on social media is being hailed as a ‘comeback’, some even referring to it as my ‘second innings’. I, for one, do not see it as such. This is not a comeback. I never went away,” she wrote.
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Now, times have changed. Female celebrities have more agency and a voice to use as compared to what was the case a few decades back.
“Being on the cover of Vogue India reminds me that life moves in circles. I started my career as a model, and here I am again at 70-plus,” she says.
Can’t wait to see what the future has in store for her!