By: Entertainment DeskNew Delhi | November 1, 2025 09:49 AM IST 4 min readVivek Vaswani recalls how Hema Malini signed Shah Rukh Khan. (Photo: Express Archive)Actor Shah Rukh Khan’s journey in Bollywood is nothing short of a film itself. From manifesting owning one of the most sought-after properties in Mumbai to becoming the biggest star of the industry, the actor has truly come far. In a recent interview, producer Vivek Vaswani sat down to discuss the actor, and he shared a rather interesting story about how actor Hema Malini signed Shah Rukh for the film Dil Aashna Hai.To celebrate Shah Rukh’s 60th birthday, Vivek Vaswani met with Radio Nasha and shared several anecdotes from the actor’s career. He recalled the time when the actor was living with him and was still trying to get his first break. It was during this time that Vivek got an unexpected call from Hema Malini, and it’s safe to say that neither Shah Rukh nor Vivek was prepared for what she had to say.ALSO READ: Shah Rukh Khan promises to meet fans at Mannat on birthday despite renovations, says he’s ‘sexy at 60’: ‘Bhaade pe reh raha hu’He said, “That was the day I realised that I was in the industry. Hema Malini called up my house, and my father picked up the phone. She introduced herself and asked him, ‘Is Vivek Vaswani there?’ He asked her, ‘Hema Malini who?’ and she said, ‘Hema Malini, the superstar.’ He came and woke me up, and he literally picked me up by my collar and said that Hema Malini is on the phone.”Vivek continued and said that Malini enquired about Shah Rukh and wished to speak with him regarding a project. “She said, ‘That boy Shah Rukh Khan, is he still sleeping at your place?’ I said ‘yes’, and she told me to wake him up. Then I picked Shah Rukh by the collar, and he went and talked to her. She told him to come by the house at 5 pm and put the phone down,” recalled Vivek. Shah Rukh Khan, Divya Bharati, Dimple Kapadia, and Hema Malini at the premiere of Dil Aashna Hai. (Photo: Express Archive)Viveck and Shah Rukh did go to Malini’s house, and the producer admitted that even though he was very nervous, he did his best trying to sell Shah Rukh to her. He said, “We went to her house like two little mice, and someone was sitting in front of us reading the newspaper. We didn’t recognise him, but when he put the paper down, we realised that it was Dharmendra. Hema Ji came and told Shah Rukh, ‘But you’re very ugly.’ I asked her, ‘Why do you want him?’ She said, ‘Aamir Khan and Salman Khan have said no.’ I told her that Rakesh Roshan and Ramesh Sippy had signed him, and that was a lie because when I need to give people careers, I can lie like a king.”He added, “She said, ‘I will pay you Rs 50k, and I am Hema Malini, so there are no questions.’ I mean, she already had Jitendra, Mithun Chakraborty, Amrita Singh, Dimple Kapadia, and Kabir Bedi. Though Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman was always his launch film, the first was Dil Aashna Hai, and the first shoot was King Uncle by Rakesh Roshan in Nairobi.”Story continues below this adDirected by Malini, the cast of Dil Aashna Hai included Shah Rukh Khan, Jeetendra, Dimple Kapadia, Amrita Singh, Mithun Chakraborty, and Divya Bharti. It was released in 1992.Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd