Bollywood's iconic 'Dream Girl', Hema Malini, has revealed a spine-chilling chapter from her early days in Mumbai, involving a residence she firmly believes was haunted. The veteran actress shared that she experienced a terrifying sensation of being choked every single night while living in that apartment.
The Search for a Home in the City of Dreams
Hema Malini, who grew up in Delhi and Chennai (then Madras), always had a fondness for spacious bungalows surrounded by greenery. Moving to Mumbai (then Bombay) for her burgeoning film career presented a challenge, as she struggled to adjust to apartment living. Her discomfort was so profound that even when her father surprised her with a sprawling sea-facing apartment in the upscale Walkeshwar neighborhood, purchased presumably with her own earnings, she instantly rejected it.
In a conversation detailed in Ram Kamal Mukherjee's biography, Hema Malini: Beyond the Dream Girl, she recalled this incident. She expressed her clear preference for a house with plenty of trees, akin to her Chennai home, which prompted her father to begin searching for a bungalow in the suburb of Juhu.
Nightly Terror in a Haunted Dwelling
Before settling into her famed Juhu bungalow, Hema Malini lived in a smaller apartment in Bandra, which was initially used for costume trials by the legendary designer Bhanu Athaiya. She later moved into a bungalow, but this new home brought with it an inexplicable and frightening phenomenon.
The actress described experiencing a horrifying sensation every night, feeling as though someone was trying to choke her, leaving her struggling to breathe. She would sleep next to her mother, who noticed her extreme restlessness. "If this had happened only once or twice we would have ignored it, but it happened every night," Hema revealed in the book. This persistent paranormal activity convinced her the house was haunted and accelerated her decision to establish permanent roots in the city.
Finding Peace and Love in Juhu
Following the haunting ordeal, Hema Malini purchased her first apartment in Mumbai. She fondly remembered that her future husband, Dharmendra, would often drop by for coffee during this period, though she claimed she had no inkling then that she would eventually fall in love and marry him.
In 1972, while shooting for the classic film Seeta Aur Geeta with Dharmendra, she bought her first bungalow in Juhu. It was a five-year-old property previously owned by a Gujarati family. "I loved that house because it had lots of trees around it," she said. The bungalow was expanded with additional rooms, and it became her cherished home where she raised her two daughters, Esha and Ahana Deol.
Interestingly, this Juhu bungalow was situated just across the street from the residence of Dharmendra, who primarily lived with his first wife, Prakash Kaur, and their sons, Sunny and Bobby Deol. Despite the close proximity, Hema and Prakash Kaur never crossed paths. Their first meeting occurred decades later when Esha Deol, then 30, visited Prakash Kaur's home during the illness of Dharmendra's brother, Ajit Deol. Esha touched Prakash's feet and received her blessings.
The legendary actor Dharmendra passed away in November 2026 at the age of 89 at his Mumbai residence. Hema Malini's recollection of her haunted past offers a fascinating glimpse into the personal trials she faced before becoming one of Indian cinema's most enduring stars.
