Did Rajesh Khanna sabotage Sanjeev Kumar’s relationship with Hema Malini? |

Rivalry in the film industry is nothing new; however, when the animosity between two stars crosses the professional lines and becomes personal, that causes chaos. One such incident happened in the 1970s, when Rajesh Khanna’s one act left Sanjeev Kumar ‘humiliated and hurt.’
The incident is mentioned in the ‘In An Actor’s Actor: The Authorised Biography of Sanjeev Kumar’ by Hanif Zaveri and Sumant Batra. It all began when Sanjeev Kumar and Hema Malini’s families were contemplating their marriage. However, they could not come to a middle ground for an alliance because Sanjeev’s mother didn’t want her daughter-in-law to do anything with the film world, and Hema Malini’s mother was adamant that her girl would not sacrifice her career at any cost.
This caused a rift between Sanjeev Kumar and Hema Malini, which was further widened at an event when the ‘Dream Girl’ came with Rajesh Khanna. At the event, Sanjeev Kumar was invited with Hema Malini, and Rajesh Khana was invited with Sharmila Tagore as they were doing a movie together. On the one hand, where Kaka knew that Sanjeev Kumar would be attending the event, the latter had no idea about Rajesh Khanna’s invitation.
Arriving early, Sanjeev took his seat, and shortly after, Rajesh entered, holding Hema’s hand. This was the last nail in the coffin for Sanjeev Kumar. To see Hema Malini with his professional rival, at a time when their own relationship was not out of the woods, left the actor “humiliated.”
According to the book, “Sanjeev was humiliated and hurt. Hema was equally shocked to see him. She had merely accompanied Rajesh Khanna at his insistence and did not know of the animosity that existed between the two. Although she could gauge to some extent the damage she had unwittingly inflicted, she did not dare confront Rajesh Khanna. Sanjeev Kumar stepped down from the stage and joined the audience in a different row, far away from them. None of them spoke to each other during the show.”
The book further adds that Sanjeev’s friends tried to him that Rajesh Khanna had done it on purpose and Hema was innocent, the actor took this insult to heart. Though he continued to maintain a professional relationship with Hema Malini, off-screen his demeanor was more than obvious that he felt betrayed. Soon after this incident, Sanjeev and Hema went their separate ways.