Hema Malini

Some Lesser Known Facts About Hema Malini

• She was born as the 3rd child of a Tamil-speaking family in Tiruchirappalli district of Madras Presidency.

• Her mother, Jaya Lakshmi Chakravarti, was a film producer.

• She left her studies in 12th standard to begin her acting career.

• She started her career as a dancer in a Tamil film in 1961.

• In 1964, a Tamil film director, C.V. Sridhar, rejected her for being too thin.

• She first appeared in a film as a dancer in the 1963 Tamil film- Idhu Sathiyam.

• Her Bollywood debut film- Sapno Ka Saudagar in 1968, did not fare well at the Box-Office.

• She remained the highest-paid Bollywood actress from 1976 to 1980.

• She got the sobriquet of Dream Girl after starring in a film of the same name in 1977.

• She has appeared in 35 films along with Dharmendra and her first film with him was Sharafat in 1970.

  

• Veteran actor, Sanjeev Kumar had a crush on Hema Malini and used Jeetendra to convey his feelings to Hema. Eventually, Hema started liking Jeetendra and dumped Sanjeev Kumar.

• During the shooting of Sholay, Dharmendra fell in love with Hema Malini and according to sources, he used to bribe the spot boys on the set of Sholay to switch off lights frequently so that he could have re-takes with Hema.

• She is considered a trendsetter as she is counted among the first few actresses who started wearing bell bottoms on the silver screen.

  

• She directed Shah Rukh Khan‘s first film- Dil Aashna Hai. However, it released after Deewana.

  

• She is an ardent animal lover and supports PETA India. She also wrote to the Mumbai Municipal Commissioner in 2009 urging him to put a ban on horse carriages. In 2011, she also wrote to Jairam Ramesh (the then Union Minister for Environment and Forests) to put a ban on Jallikattu (bullfighting).

  

• Hema Malini is a pure vegetarian and she says “Knowing that my food choices are helping the planet and animals too, makes me happy.”
  

• Hema Malini is an advocate of pure water for everyone. She is also associated with a water purifier company and endorses it.

  

• She is a trained Bharatnatyam dancer and is also well versed in Kuchipudi. In an interview, she revealed that she can’t live without dancing. She has also trained her daughters in Bharatnatyam and often performs at various events along with her daughters.

• On 10 November 2025, Dharmendra was admitted to Breach Candy Hospital, Mumbai, for breathing complications and placed on ventilator support. Hema Malini later took to social media to confirm he was under constant medical care.
  

• On 24 November 2025, Dharmendra passed away at his residence in Mumbai due to age-related ailments.