Hema Malini says she’s not ready to watch Dharmendra’s final film Ikkis yet

Actor Hema Malini has said she has not yet found the courage to watch Ikkis, the final film featuring her late husband and cinema legend Dharmendra, adding that she may do so once “the wounds start healing.”

In an interview with Screen, Hema said the emotional weight of the film has kept her from watching it so far. “I came to Mathura when it was released. I had work here. Also, I can’t see it now — it will be too overwhelming,” she said. “That’s what my daughters are also saying. Maybe I will watch it later when the wounds start healing.”

Directed by Sriram Raghavan and produced by Dinesh Vijan under Maddock Films, Ikkis is based on the life of Second Lieutenant Arun Khetpal, the youngest recipient of the Param Vir Chakra. The film stars Agastya Nanda in the lead role, alongside Simar Bhatia, Jaideep Ahlawat and Dharmendra.

During the interview, Hema also addressed speculation about tensions within the family after two separate prayer meetings were held following Dharmendra’s death — one organised by his sons Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol, and another by Hema Malini and her daughters.

“It has always been very nice and cordial. Even today it is very nice,” she said. “I don’t know why people think something is wrong with us. People want gossip. Why should I answer them? It’s my life, our personal life. We are absolutely happy and very close to each other.”

She added that it was “sad” that people used grief to create stories, saying that was why she chose not to respond to speculation.

Dharmendra passed away on November 24 last year at his Mumbai residence at the age of 89. He was cremated on November 25. A prayer meet organised by Sunny and Bobby Deol was held on November 27, attended by several industry figures, while Hema Malini and her daughters, Esha and Ahana Deol, held a separate prayer meeting at their home the same day.

Dharmendra is survived by his two wives — Prakash Kaur, whom he married in 1954 and with whom he had four children, including Sunny and Bobby Deol, and Hema Malini, whom he married in 1980.