Dharmendra once fell in love with the popular actress of the 80s', Anita Raj, who was 27 years younger than him.
The He-Man of Bollywood, Dharmendra was considered the most handsome actor of his generation. His charm was such that even after his wedding to Hema Malini, girls couldn’t stop themselves from drooling over him. The handsome actor got married to Prakash Kaur in 1957, however, despite being married, Dharmendra fell in love with the Dream Girl of Bollywood, Hema Malini.
It was on the sets of the film, Tum Haseen Main Jawan, when the Punjab da Puttar, Dharmendra fell madly in love with the South Indian beauty, Hema Malini. Since his first wife, Prakash Kaur did not want a divorce, Dharmendra and Hema converted to Islam so that he could keep his two marriages and got married in 1980.
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However, after his marriage with Hema, the handsome Dharmendra fell in love for the third time. This time to an actress, who was 27 years younger to him. Yes, you read that right. Everything was going fine in Dharmendra’s life until he met the popular actress of the 80s, Anita Raj.
Dharmendra and Anita starred in many films like Karishma Kudrat Ka, Zalzala, Insaniyat Ke Dushman and many more. During that phase, Dharmendra couldn’t resist Anita’s charming personality and fell in love with her. As per multiple reports, Dharmendra and Anita’s closeness disturbed Hema Malini.
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Dharmendra was so involved with Anita that he started recommending her name to many directors. Hema got so furious with Dharmendra’s relationship with Anita that she herself intervened in the matter. Rumour mills have it that Hema created a scene in the family and warned Dharmendra to stay away from Anita. Hema stopped their growing closeness, and Dharmendra distanced himself from Anita.
Dharmendra and Hema Malini's love story had gone through a lot of ups and downs, however, they had defied all the odds. In an interview with the Deccan Chronicle, Hema talked about her decision to marry Dharmendra. She shared that she had never wanted to hurt anyone because of her love, not even Dharmendra's first wife, and hence, she had never intruded in their life. The Dream Girl proudly stated that she had never taken Dharmendra away from his first wife and children.
Daughter of actor, Jagdish Raj, Anita Raj Khurana is a popular actress, known for her performances in films like Prem Geet, Zara Si Zindagi, Zameen Aasman and many more. Her roles as 'Rajmata Devvadan Singh Deo' in the serial, Ek Tha Raja Ek Thi Rani and 'Kulwant Kaur Dhillon' in Choti Sarrdaarni made her a household name. When Anita acted in Sunil Hingorani’s directorial debut Karisma Kudrat Ka, the duo fell in love with each other and got married in 1986.
Dharmendra and Hema Malini have sailed through all the highs and lows of their relationship and came as a strong couple of Bollywood, reinstating our faith in marriage.
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