Quietly,
Bollywood's
ageless
Dream
Girl
Hema
Malini
brought
in
her
61st
birthday
on
Saturday,
October
16,
with
a
party
at
a
suburban
hotel.
A
close-knit
warm
evening
of
great
reminiscences
the
highlight
of
the
evening
was
the
pact
that
Hema
made
with
Dharmendra.
On
her
61st
birthday,
the
Dream
Girl,
who
has
wowed
million
with
her
performances,
vowed
to
fulfil
her
dream
of
releasing
her
daughter
Esha's
comeback
vehicle
Tell
Me
Oh
Khuda
on
January
14,
come
what
may.
Post-production
work
for
the
film
will
now
be
undertaken
on
a
war
footing.
Husband
Dharmendra
has
promised
every
possible
assistance.
The
birthday
girl
confirms
that
her
parivar
has
indeed
taken
on
the
task
of
releasing
the
Dream
Girl's
dream
project
on
time.
"We
have
decided
on
January
14...let's
see,
I
know
it's
cutting
it
really
close.
But
one
has
to
set
difficult
deadlines
to
achieve
targets.
Tell
Me
Oh
Khuda
is
very
important
for
both
me
and
Dharamji.
When
I
had
to
take
charge
of
the
film,
I
didn't
know
how
I'd
complete
it.
But
I
did.
The
film
is
at
the
moment
my
biggest
priority."
The
birthday
party
therefore
turned
out
to
be
three-pronged
celebration.
Says
Hema,
"Besides
my
birthday,
we
were
also
celebrating
the
completion
of
Tell
Me
Oh
Khuda.
And
it
was
also
Navratri.
Now,
if
we
can
release
on
January
14,
I
promise
you
we'll
have
the
biggest
celebration
possible."
Hema
had
to
recreate
Turkey
in
Film
City
to
finish
the
incomplete
portions
of
the
shooting
which
took
place
in
the
country
a
few
months
back.
With
the
film's
official
director
Mayur
Puri
being
eased
out
of
the
project,
the
scenario
looked
bleak
for
the
expensive
project
shot
in
3
continents
with
3
different
cinematographers.
But
the
tireless
diva
matched
the
Turkish
sequences
shot
actually
on
location
in
the
country
with
what
remained
to
be
shot
in
Film
City.
Said
Hema,
"We
shot
extensively
in
Turkey,
but
unfortunately
the
shooting
could
not
be
completed.
I
had
no
other
option
but
to
recreate
Turkey
in
Mumbai.
Luckily
I've
a
fantastic
team.
They've
all
been
very
encouraging.
Otherwise
I
wouldn't
have
been
able
to
take
on
this
huge
challenge
when
my
hands
are
over-full."
Hema
admits
she
was
nervous
taking
over
the
direction
of
her
daughter's
film.
"I
have
not
directed
a
film
for
18
years
since
Dil
Aashna
Hai.
After
the
boy
(director
Mayur
Puri)
had
to
go,
many
directors
came
forward
offering
to
complete
the
film
for
me.
But
since
Tell
Me
Oh
Khuda
was
conceptualized
by
my
team
and
me,
I
was
determined
to
see
it
to
the
end."
Story first published: Wednesday, October 20, 2010, 16:35 [IST]