With Ramesh Sippy’s gender twist on Ram Aur Shyam (1967) – Seeta Aur Geeta (1972), she showed splendid comic timing and perfectly played, both the timid Seeta and bindaas Geeta, becoming the the top female star in the country, taking over from Mumtaz. With Waaris (1969), opposite Jeetendra, and Johny Mera Naam (1970), where she had Dev Anand as her hero, Hema became a top star in Hindi cinema. Hema began her career replacing the great Vyjayanthimala opposite Raj Kapoor in Mahesh Kaul’s Sapnon Ka Saudagar (1968) where the posters splashed her picture with the catch phrase – ‘Dream Girl.’ The film flopped but she was appreciated and survived. Not only did she do so, but when she did, the very same Sridhar had to eat humble pie and come back to her for Hema to star in his Gehri Chaal (1973). Born on October 16, 1948, her first director, CV Sridhar, threw her out of a Tamil film that he was directing in 1964, saying she had no star appeal! Stung by this, Hema resolved she would make it big where it mattered the most – the world of Hindi cinema.
Ironically, for someone who ruled the Hindi film industry, her career almost ended before it began. When Rajesh Khanna’s films started sinking, her Prem Nagar (1974) with him gave him a new lease of life, even if temporarily.
When Dev Anand’s films in the 70s, particularly those with Zeenat Aman crashed, Ameer Gareeb (1974) with Hema Malini was a hit and kept him going as a leading man. At her peak, she wielded such strong commercial clout that top actors like Dev Anand and Rajesh Khanna had to turn to her to give them that much wanted hit.
Hema Malini was the third South Indian actress after Vyjayanthimala and Waheeda Rehman to be a major Hindi film star.
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