Bollywood’s veteran star Hema Malini has finally spoken out about why she is not living with her famous actor husband Dharmendra in a recent interview with Lehren TV.

When the interviewer told Hema Malini that people call her a “symbol of feminism” for living in her own house after marriage, the actress replied: Nobody wants to be like that, it happens. Automatically, naturally what happens, you have to accept. Otherwise, nobody will feel like they want to live their life like this. No! Every woman wants to have a husband, children, like a normal family. But somewhere, it went out of the way.”

At the same time she said that Dharmendra has always been there. “I am not feeling bad about it or sulking or feeling sad about it. I am happy with myself. I have my two children, and I have brought them up very well. Of course, he (Dharmendra) is there, always. Everywhere. Naturally he has to do it. He was the one worried, ‘Shaadi hona chaiye bachchon ka jaldi’ (The kids should get married early). I said Hoga (It’ll happen). When the time is right, the right person will come around. With the blessings of God and guru ma, everything happened.”

Dharmendra married Hema Malini, a leading star at the time, in 1980 in his second marriage. The actor has two daughters – Esha and Ahana – with Hema Malini.

Dharmendra earlier married Prakash Kaur in 1954 at the age of 19 when he was yet to make his debut in Bollywood. They are parents to four children-Sunny, Bobby Vijeeta and Ajeeta. Dharmendra is currently staying with them.

Hema Malini and her daughters did not attend Sunny Deol’s son Karan’s wedding last month in what was seen as relations having gone sour.