Veteran actress and politician Hema Malini once shared the story behind how she came to be known as the 'Dream Girl'—a title she received long before the release of the film that would later carry the same name.
During an appearance on The Kapil Sharma Show, Hema Malini recalled that the nickname was coined while her debut Hindi film, Sapno Ka Saudagar (1968), was preparing for release.
Speaking with host Kapil Sharma, the actress revealed that B. Ananthaswami, producer of Sapno Ka Saudagar, devised a unique promotional campaign to introduce her to audiences as the "Dream Girl coming to town."
“I was also like, the movie is close to release, and my name is nowhere to be seen. What are they doing this ‘Dream Girl, Dream Girl’. But he said, “That is how your name is going to be. Later on, we will reveal who is that ‘Dream Girl’ – Hema Malini”. It was his idea which ended up becoming so popular.”
Directed by Mahesh Kaul, Sapno Ka Saudagar was produced by B. Ananthaswami and featured Raj Kapoor, Hema Malini, Tanuja and Nadira in key roles. The film's music was composed by Shankar Jaikishan.
Nearly a decade later, Hema Malini headlined Dream Girl (1977), a film that further cemented her association with the title. The Pramod Chakravorty directorial also starred Ashok Kumar, Dharmendra and Prem Chopra.
In the film, Hema Malini portrays a young woman who assumes five different identities—Sapna, Padma, Champabai, Dream Girl and Rajkumari—to steal money in an effort to support an orphanage.
The film's soundtrack, composed by the celebrated duo Laxmikant–Pyarelal, remains widely popular. Its title track, “Dream Girl,” sung by Kishore Kumar, went on to become an evergreen classic.
