Hema Malini Says She Will Watch Dharmendra’s Final Film ‘Ikkis’ When “Wounds Start Healing”
Hema Malini said that she is not emotionally ready to watch Dharmendra’s final film ‘Ikkis’.
The Hindi film industry and millions of fans are still coming to terms with the loss of veteran superstar Dharmendra, who passed away on November 24, 2025 at the age of 89. In a recent, heartfelt interview with Screen, veteran actress and politician Hema Malini opened up about the emotional difficulty of facing the screen without her late husband, Dharmendra. Despite his final film, ‘Ikkis’, being out in theatres, Hema revealed she has not yet found the courage to watch it.
Hema Malini explained that the timing of the release coincided with her responsibilities in Mathura, but the primary reason remains deeply personal. She shared that viewing the film right now would be too painful.
When asked whether she has watched Dharmendra’s final film Ikkis, Hema shared, “I came to Mathura when it was released. I have to do my work here. Also, I can’t see it now, it will be too overwhelming. That’s what my daughters are also saying. Maybe I will watch it later when the wounds start healing.”
‘Ikkis’, directed by Sriram Raghavan and produced by Dinesh Vijan (Maddock Films), serves as a tribute to Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal, the youngest Param Vir Chakra recipient. It stars Agastya Nanda in the lead role, alongside Dharmendra, Jaideep Ahlawat, and Simar Bhatia. The movie has so far made Rs 29 crore in India.
The interview also touched upon the persistent gossip regarding a divide within the Deol family. Speculation spiked after two separate prayer meets were held for Dharmendra – one by Sunny Deol and another by Hema Malini.
She clarified that the family dynamic has always been “nice and cordial” and remains so today. The actress dismissed the rumours as a product of people seeking “gossip” and “using other’s grief to write articles”.
“It has always been very nice and cordial. Even today it is very nice. I don’t know why people think something is wrong with us. It is because people want gossip. Why should I answer them? Is it necessary for me to give an explanation? Why should I? It’s my life. My personal life, our personal life. We are absolutely happy and very close to each other. That’s it. I don’t have anything more to say about this. I don’t know what stories people are making up. So sad that people use other’s grief to write a few articles. That is why I don’t answer,” the veteran actress said.
The ‘He-Man’ of Bollywood passed away on November 24, 2025, at the age of 89. After a brief health scare and hospitalization at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital earlier that month, he passed away peacefully at his residence.
On November 27, Sunny and Bobby Deol organized a prayer meet attended by legends like Amitabh Bachchan and Salman Khan. Hema Malini and her daughters did not attend the public event, choosing instead to hold a private prayer ceremony at their Mumbai home on the same day.
Dharmendra is survived by a large, blended family. In 1954, he got married to Prakash Kaur, with whom he had four children, including actors Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol. In 1980, he tied the knot with Hema Malini, with whom he had two daughters, Esha Deol and Ahana Deol.
