Hema Malini married Dharmendra in 1980, right at the peak of her career. At that time, Hema Malini was counted among Bollywood’s top actresses. She was elated because her career was flourishing, and she had found love in her life partner. Although Dharmendra was already married with children, he and Hema Malini decided to join hands and marry.
However, soon after, disaster struck Hema Malini. She experienced the worst phase of her life and was even forced to work in B-Grade films for the sake of her daughters.
₹1 Crore Tax Arrears Due
When Hema Malini started her career, she was supported by her parents, Jaya Chakraborty and V.S. Ramanujam Chakraborty. She delivered one hit film after another and became one of the highest-earning actresses of the 70s. Despite this success, Hema Malini discovered in the early 1980s that she had a staggering ₹1 crore in tax arrears owed to the government, which she was required to pay immediately. Since actors did not earn crores back then, this was an enormous sum for Hema Malini.
This incident is mentioned in Hema Malini’s biography, ‘Hema Malini: Beyond The Dream Girl,’ written by Ram Kamal Mukherjee. The book states, “Dharmendra offered help, but Hema Malini refused to take any.”
In the book, Hema explained that despite her father’s constant reminders, her mother was extremely careless about paying taxes. She said, “My father kept reminding Amma repeatedly that we needed to pay taxes, but my mother was naive and felt it was unfair to collect such a huge tax from us, given that her daughter was working so hard to earn that money.”
Hema Forced to Do B-Grade Films
Hema Malini further revealed in the book that her parents often argued over this issue. Hema only learned about the ₹1 crore tax debt after her father’s passing. She wrote in the book:
“Unfortunately, it was only after my father’s demise that we realized we were trapped in a very tight financial crunch and had a lot of tax arrears to pay.”
At that time, Hema urgently needed a large amount of money. The easiest way to earn this money was to sign as many films as possible, as actors were not paid very high fees back then. However, in this rush for money, Hema Malini was forced to act in B-Grade films because no major banner was willing to take a chance on her.
“It Was the Worst Phase of My Life”
Reflecting on this difficult time, Hema Malini wrote:
“This was the worst phase of my life, which lasted for 10 years. I had to pay off my debts, and I had nothing besides these films. My dance shows kept me going, but most of the money came from the films.”
At the time Hema Malini had to work in B-Grade movies, she was already a mother to two daughters, Esha and Ahana. Esha Deol once shared how she found out about her mother Hema Malini acting in B-Grade films. Esha said, “After Ahana’s birth, I realized Mom started shooting a lot more. She was rarely home. Later, when we saw films like Durga, Anjaam, Sitapur ki Geeta, and Jamai Raja, I asked her why she was doing these films. That’s when she told me about the debt.”
