Veteran actress-politician Hema Malini remembered working with Rajesh Khanna in ‘Mehbooba’ when a contestant of the ‘Indian Idol 13’ sang a song from the said movie. She said: “With every artist, the art remains immortal. I would be overwhelmed if my two daughters, Esha and Ahana, follow all my traditions and try to make these traditions immortal. I remember when Rajesh Khanna Ji and I were shooting some sequence of the ‘Mehbooba’ movie, this sizzling song (‘Mere naina sawan bhaado’) came directly from the recording studio, and Shakti Samata Ji was so impressed that he called us to listen to the song. Everyone was so excited that R.D. Burman Ji also landed in the studio that day.” The 74-year-old actress is called Bollywood’s ‘Dream Girl’ and she has given a number of hits including ‘Seeta Aur Geeta’, ‘Sanyasi’, ‘Dharmatama’, ‘Pratigya’, ‘Sholay’, ‘Trishul’, ‘Shrafat’, ‘Naya Zamana’, ‘Prem Nagar’, ‘Mehbooba’, and so on. In 1992, she also produced and directed the film ‘Dil Aashna Hai’, starring Divya Bharti and Shah Rukh Khan. Hema will be seen gracing the show along with her daughter Esha Deol for the ‘Dream Girl Special’ episode.
When other contestants performed on different tracks from Hema’s films, contestant Navdeep Wadali, who is the grandson of the most popular Sufi singer and qawwal Puranchand Wadali chose to sing ‘Mere Naina Saawan Bhado’ which is a classical-based song. After listening to him, Hema shared: “I feel overwhelmed to know that you belong to the family of the well-known and respected Wadali brothers, and it’s great that you are taking the legacy of your tradition forward”. Puranchand Wadali and Pyarelal Wadali are known as Wadali Brothers from Amritsar, Punjab. Their Sufi composition and qawwali are famous globally. She added: “I have heard a lot of junior talents on different reality shows. You people have made your name from this stage; thus, move forward in life and do your best; best wishes to you.”
Vishal Dadlani, Neha Kakkar, and Himesh Reshammiya are judging the ‘Indian Idol 13’.
The singing reality show airs on Sony Entertainment Television.
