Rekha's mother was also an actress. She is the daughter of South actress Pushpavalli who fell in love with a twice-married South cinema superstar Gemini Ganesan, whom she did not marry but became the mother of his two daughters.
When Pushpavalli was cast in the lead role in 'Miss Malini' with new actor Gemini Ganesan, she fell in love with him and they entered into a relationship, even though both of them were married to other people.
Rekha's mother Pushpavalli, throughout her life, was in the headlines more for her personal life than her films. She got married in 1940, but after just six years, her married life turned sour and she started living separately from her husband.