Hema Malini never competed with Prakash Kaur, Sunny Deol for Dharmendra's love: 'How can you torture someone for...'

Veteran actress and talk show host Simi Garewal on Saturday took to her social media account and shared a snippet from her old interview from her superhit talk show Rendezvous with Simi. The video featured Bollywood's Dream Girl Hema Malini talking about her marriage and love story with her husband and Bollywood's He-Man Dharmendra.

When Simi asked Hema about meeting Dharmendra for the first time, the Baghban actress said, "I met him for the first time at the premiere of one of the films. I thought I had never seen such a handsome man in my life. And later, I heard him saying the same thing about me." Simi further asked Hema if she ever tried to resist Dharmendra, knowing he was married.  

"In the beginning, I never bothered. Somewhere in my mind, I used to think, 'If I ever marry, I must marry somebody like him.' Not him, but somebody like him", said Hema, and added, "He constantly used to tell me that he loved me a lot, and I would just say, "Okay, okay," without giving much importance to it, knowing the consequences."

The graceful host then asked Hema what made her finally accept the relationship. "It was destiny," Hema said. "We were together for so long, and then suddenly thinking of marrying someone else just didn't feel right. So one day, I called him and said, 'You have to marry me now.'" He said, "'Yes, I'll marry you.' And that's how it happened."

Hema also expressed why she always kept out of Dharmendra's family affair with his first wife and family. "I never tried to compete with his other family for his time or attention, not at all. In love, you are supposed to give, not demand. When you love a person so much, and you also receive so much love from them, how can you torture someone for small, petty things?"

The Seeta Aur Geeta actress added, "That's the reason I never bothered, never irritated him, never put pressure on him. I wanted the love to continue. And that's how it still is today; we love each other so much, nothing can come between us. I understand his problems, and I adjust everything according to him, because of which he loves me even more. When you give so much, you receive so much. That is love; you must give respect to the love you have."

Simi captioned this beautiful conversation as, "I watched our Rendezvous again recently to revisit the Hema‐Dharam love story. It was poignant & it was courageous, considering the circumstances. Marrying a married man is not an option most women of today would settle for. But having chosen to follow her love, Hema‐ji handled the relationship with a rare degree of selflessness & grace. Today, she must feel a great sense of loss without him. I hope the happy memories will comfort her & fill the void."

For the uninitiated, Dharmendra and Hema's love story is considered one of the most romantic sagas. The two top stars of their times met in the early 1970s while working together, and their on-screen chemistry soon blossomed into a deep personal bond. Despite facing extreme societal judgement and strong opposition from both families, the couple married in 1980. Dharmendra was already married to Prakash Kaur and was a father of four children: Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol, Ajeeta Deol and Vijayta Deol. 

Dharmendra and Hema had two daughters - Esha Deol and Ahana Deol. The rift between the two families seems to continue even after Dharmendra's death as two separate prayer meeting for the late actor were held - one hosted by Sunny Deol and his family at Taj Lands End in Bandra and other hosted by Hema at her own house. Hema and her daughters were also absent when Dharmendra ashes were immersed in the holy rivers of Ganga in Haridwar earlier this week.

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