IN HER PRIME

Malaika Arora rolls back the years and opens up about fame, family, and the importance of reinvention

- SYDNEY ATKINS

An iconic photograph of Malaika Arora, taken circa 1998, has perhaps defined her persona and career path. It's a typical filmy photograph, loud, flashy, and seductive. Beside a ghagra-clad Arora is the undisputed King of Bollywood, arms spread in his trademark style, dimpled smile, setting the nation's hearts aflutter; and yet, your eyes will be drawn to her. In retrospect, that frozen moment's red, black, and silver tones seem to scream something about a young siren arriving and intending to remain, emblazoned in our collective memory.

It is not hard to see the allure of photographing Arora in this way. She's gorgeous, and all of us who grew up in the 90s could attest to her consistent presence in our points of reference, be it MTV India, those iconic songs, the silver screen, or our style check mirror moments before leaving home.

But I feel there's more to the star than she lets on. As a 90s kid familiar with her rise to fame, I know she's intelligent, wise, discerning, brave, and resilient enough to have survived (and thrived) under the arclights for 20-plus years. This interview was an attempt to peel back the layers and glance, even fleetingly, at the woman behind the persona, who has managed to remain relevant despite decades in the business. Of late, cupid has been her close companion – Arora the VJ, model, actor, dancer, host, daughter, sister, ex-wife, mother, girlfriend, yoga diva – woman seems to be basking in the kind of love and success her prophetic anthem espoused.