Dharmendra has been grabbing headlines amid growing concerns for his health. The veteran actor was discharged from the Breach Candy Hospital in Mumbai on Wednesday morning after being admitted there for the last few days.
On Tuesday, Hema Malini and Esha Deol debunked Dharmendra’s death rumours on their social media with strong-worded statements.
Amid his health scare, here’s one aspect of Dharmendra’s life, which not many people know about. The veteran superstar had two marriages in his life – first with Prakash Kaur in 1954 when he was just 19 years old and then with actress Hema Malini in 1980. But, before beginning his career in Bollywood, the Sholay star had a huge crush on the legendary actress-singer Suraiya.
Among the highest-paid stars in the Hindi film industry, Dharmendra once revealed that it was Suraiya who inspired him to pursue a career in cinema. He admitted that his love for films began after watching her breathtaking performances, confessing that he was so mesmerised with her grace and voice that he saw her 1949 film Dillagi nearly 40 times.
Suraiya, who dominated Bollywood from the mid-1940s to the early 1950s, appeared in nearly 70 films and lent her voice to 338 songs, many of which have since become timeless classics. Her most famous roles came in Vidya (1948), Pyar Ki Jeet (1948), Badi Behen (1949), Omar Khaiyyam (1946), Parwana (1947), Dastan (1950), Diwana (1952), and Mirza Ghalib (1954).
While Dharmendra was madly in love with Suraiya, she loved the legendary actor Dev Anand with whom she gave multiple hits. They were also in a relationship for four years from 1948 to 1951. The two had also decided to tie the knot with each other, but Suraiya’s family didn’t let it happen as they threatened to kill Anand if they eloped to get married.
She remained unmarried, retired from acting in 1963, and passed away in 2004 at the age of 75 after battling several health complications. Among those who attended her funeral was Dharmendra, her lifelong admirer, who had once acknowledged that she was the inspiration behind his decision to join the world of cinema.