Subhash K Jha (DNA; October 20, 2017)

On Monday, Hema Malini turned a year older, and celebrated it with the release of her biography Beyond The Dream Girl. She sighs, “It was truly one of the most memorable moments of my life. And it was very kind of Deepika (Padukone) to make time to come for the launch of the book. Deepika is now part of my family. After Aishwarya (Rai Bachchan), I see Deepika as the most graceful actress we have.”

While Deepika’s presence was a big bright spot at the book launch, Hema’s husband Dharmendra’s absence was a downer. “He wanted to be there,” says the protective and loving wife. “But Dharamji gets very nervous around big crowds. And the crowd at the book launch was really huge. Nowadays, whenever I am at an event the crowds get hard to control. Even I got very nervous seeing the size of the crowd. I didn’t want him to be jostled around. So, I am glad I asked him to stay away. But he was with me and the family for the entire day. He writes such lovely poetry for me. I am especially fond of the one titled Saadgi, which he has written for me. He always thinks my simplicity is my biggest virtue.”

She is now excited about the new arrival in her family. “My elder daughter Esha is expecting her first child this month. Do I want a grandson or a granddaughter? Dono chalega. But since I already have a grandson (younger daughter Ahaana’s child) a granddaughter would be nice. Would I want her to be an actress like me? She can be anything she wants as long as she is happy in life.”