Veteran actor Saira Banu has shared an emotional post about her friendship with Hema Malini and the equation that she and Dilip Kumar shared for Dharmendra, who passed away last November. Sharing a picture with Hema Malini, Banu recalled how she was "simply mesmerised" by her beauty when she first saw her on the sets of "Deewana" in 1966. They shared rooms next to each other at the Krishna Raj Sagar Dam while Banu was shooting for the Raj Kapoor starrer.
Hema Malini made her Bollywood debut opposite Raj Kapoor with "Sapno Ka Saudagar" in 1968.
"Our rooms were next to each other, which meant our days, quite naturally, became shared. We would sit for hours in the verandah, speaking of everything that came to mind, beauty, skin care, little routines, matters that felt so important then, and perhaps were, in their own gentle way," Banu posted on Instagram, sharing that their mothers would also participate in those conversations.
Banu said that despite the passage of time, "little, in essence, has changed" for them.
"Some friendships do not ask to be maintained, they simply endure. With her, there is no effort, no need to explain or revisit. There is only understanding, a familiarity that time, in all its passing, has not diminished." Banu, who worked with Dharmendra on films such as "Ayee Milan Ki Bela", "Aadmi Aur Insaan", "Resham Ki Dori" and "Jwaar Bhata", also reminisced about the bond they shared.
"And somewhere in those thoughts, I found myself thinking of Dharmendra ji, of his warmth, of the sincerity with which he held his affections. The love and regard he had for Dilip sahib was never something he needed to declare; it was understood, in the way he spoke of him, with a respect that came from somewhere very deep," Banu said.
Dharmendra died in November last year at the age of 89.
Banu said some bonds are special as they don't announce themselves.
"They are simply lived, over years, in ways both seen and unseen. And in moments like these, one realises not everything that is precious belongs to the past. Some of it remains with us still," she added.
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