This is a piece i wrote on his unfortunate demise. The Hindi version of the script was written for Ravish Kumar’s channel. The script of his tribute to Dharmendra was written by me. You can watch that below.
Dharmendra: Beyond the He-Man
Dharmendra was a unique artist of Indian cinema who remained associated with films until his final moments. He served Indian cinema for over six decades. People called him He-Man, Garam Dharam, and Macho Man, but his biography was titled "Dharmendra: Not Just a He-Man." Remembering Dharmendra, we'll recall Sholay, Yaadon Ki Baaraat, and his countless glimpses of the Angry Man. But amidst all this, perhaps we shouldn't forget the Dharmendra who starred in films like Bandini, Satyakam, Anupama, Chaitali, and countless others. While these may not be the most popular films in his filmography, discussing Dharmendra without them would be an injustice to his art.
Dharmendra was one of the most handsome men in the industry. He exuded charm. He was perhaps one of the first actors to perform a shirtless scene in the film "Phool Aur Patthar," a rarity at the time. When Dharmendra entered films, he was ostracized as a wrestler, but he transformed this uniqueness into his own talent.
The artist who taught other artists how to dance despite not knowing how to dance.
Dharmendra was never known for his dancing, while Dharmendra and his son Sunny Deol are known for their poor dancing. But Dharmendra never cared about this. Shatrughan Sinha says that despite his lack of dancing, he received inspiration and learning to dance with complete confidence from Dharmendra. When he felt the need to dance to the song "Main Jat Yamla Pagla Deewana" from the film "Pratigya," he invented a dance that no one could learn or teach. This dance became the trademark of his career.
The artist who was both Proud as well as generous.
One thing that is always said about Dharmendra is the stories of his generosity. Influenced by Dharmendra's success, many new artists came to Mumbai to explore the world. Dharmendra not only provided shelter and food to many such actors, but also gave them work. Kiran Kumar recounts how Dharmendra refused to kill him in a film because Kiran was his friend Jeevan's son. Gurbachan Singh recounts that upon moving to Mumbai from Punjab, he received both work and food from Dharmendra's home.
But Dharmendra was as generous as he was self-respecting. He didn't tolerate taunts, and stories of his fights and quarrels are as popular as he himself. Early in his career, he even clashed with actor Rajkumar. He once taunted Dharmendra on the set of the film Kajal, saying that wrestlers are emerging in the name of actors these days. Dharmendra was a newcomer during the making of Kajal, and when Rajkumar taunted him, a confrontation ensued between the two. However, due to his new role, Dharmendra had to apologize. Dharmendra's role in the film was relatively small, and Rajkumar received more attention. But times soon changed, and Dharmendra became a much bigger star than Rajkumar. However, Dharmendra never forgot the insult, and the two did not work together for many years.
A similar story can be found in the context of Sanjay Khan. Around the same time Dharmendra began his career, Sanjay Khan was also trying to establish his career in Bollywood. Chetan Anand signed both of them for his film Haqeeqat, in which Dharmendra played the lead role and Sanjay Khan played a supporting role. Sanjay Khan recounts in his autobiography, *The Best Mistakes of My Life*, that after the film's release, Chetan Anand called Sanjay Khan and told him that his performance was highly praised. Chetan Anand wanted to make a film with him and Dharmendra, but Sanjay Khan refused to play a supporting role. His overconfidence was shattered when a feud with Mala Sinha cost him six films. In contrast, Dharmendra began his career with heroine-centric films like *Anpadh*, *Bandhini*, and *Kajal*. Dharmendra wisely maintained his relationships with leading actresses, leading to him being consistently signed opposite them. In contrast, Sanjay Khan's career began to falter by the 1970s, and he was relegated to the category of a B-grade actor. Dharmendra not only defeated Sanjay Khan in the race for stardom, but once, during a fight between the two, Dharmendra slapped Sanjay Khan hard, after which Sanjay Khan never dared to confront Dharmendra again.
The Performances That Didn't Get the Credit It Deserved
People generally consider Dharmendra a decent sctor with a limited acting range, but he has given stellar performances in films directed by prominent directors like Bimal Roy (Bandini), Hrishikesh Mukherjee (Anupama, Satyakam, Guddi, Chaitali, Chupke Chupke, etc.), and J.P. Dutta (Ghulami, Hathiyar, Bantwara). He was also awarded by the President for his outstanding work in the film Anupama. Pleased with the success of Anupama, Dharmendra decided to produce Satyakam. Satyakam and Anupama share many of the same cast, including Dharmendra, Sharmila Tagore, and Tarun Bose. Both Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Dharmendra consider Satyakam their best film. Even Sunny Deol said in Aap Ki Adalat that he has seen all his father's films and his favorite film is Satyakam. Despite this, Satyakam failed at the box office, leaving Dharmendra heartbroken. Hrishikesh Mukherjee has always been Dharmendra's mentor and friend, whose films showcase Dharmendra's more serious side. Be it Anupama Aur Satyakam, Guddi, in which Dharmendra plays his own character, or Chupke Chupke. However, due to excessive drinking, his voice began to falter in the 80s, and in many of his later films, he sounded like a drunk man. Perhaps audiences who saw Dharmendra in the 80s and 90s remember him for his violent films, which were box office grossers but were not long-remembered.
A prime example of this can be seen in 1987, when Dharmendra delivered a string of seven hits in a single year. This was the time when his son, Sunny Deol, had already begun his film career, but Dharmendra proved that aging hadn't affected his stardom. However, in the 1990s, Dharmendra, like Mithun Chakraborty, ventured into B-grade films, but unlike Mithun, these films didn't achieve the same success. There came a time when Sunny personally told his father not to work in such films. Dharmendra, a talented actor, couldn't stay away from the silver screen for long. He returned as a character actor, and this time his film choices were much better. Films like Johnny Gaddaar, Life in a Metro, Yamla Pagla Deewana, Rocky, and Rani Ki Prem Kahani showed that he still possessed the artist of his past.
The Artist Who Didn't Receive Awards
Dharmendra wasn't part of a film family, but the success he achieved on his own continues to permeate the Deol family, generations to this day. Dharmendra began his career as a suave romantic hero, but he gained fame with the film Phool Aur Patthar, which first introduced him to the hot Dharam. This image became the hallmark of his career, bringing him fame and fortune. However, Dharmendra always harbored a regret that he was never included in the list of serious actors like Amitabh Bachchan or Sanjeev Kumar. Even his greatest performances never received a Filmfare nomination. Indeed, Dharmendra was never nominated for his best performance, let alone an award.
Dharmendra did not receive a Filmfare nomination for Satyakam, which is considered perhaps Dharmendra's finest performance and most brilliant film. The film itself won a National Award, but Dharmendra received nothing for his performance. Similarly, Dharmendra received the President's Medal for another classic film by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Anupama, but strangely, he did not receive a Filmfare nomination that time either. Similarly, Dharmendra gave another brilliant performance in Chupke Chupke, in which he single-handedly surpassed every other actor in terms of his comic timing, yet he still didn't even receive a nomination. Perhaps he deserved a Filmfare Award for Aai Milan Ki Bela, where he took the risk of portraying a graying role, or for his supporting roles in Bandini Aur Guddi. It's also surprising that he didn't receive a nomination for a film like Ghulam, and Amitabh Bachchan didn't receive a nomination for a masala film like Mard in the same year. He didn't receive a nomination for Hukumat in 1987 because there were no Filmfare Awards that year.
This sigh of relief was evident when he received the Lifetime Achievement Filmfare Award, and he considered it a memorable moment after being ignored by film awards throughout his career, saying, "I've never been considered for an award in my life." Fortunately, he received a National Award as a producer for Ghayal, and National Awards are something many aspire to, but few truly receive.
Dharmendra's Family, Love, and Conflict
When Dharmendra entered films, he was already married and had children. Yet, he couldn't resist falling in love with Hema Malini. Hema Malini wasn't just a dream girl in name; she had become the dream of many veteran actors of those days. These actors included Sanjeev Kumar, Dharmendra, and Jeetendra. It is said that during the filming of the film "Sita Aur Geeta," Sanjeev Kumar fell in love with Hema Malini, and by the time the film's shooting was complete, he sent a proposal to Hema Malini's house through his mother, which Hema's mother refused, saying her daughter wasn't yet of marriageable age. Even after this, Sanjeev Kumar did not give up and sent his love proposal through Jeetendra, who was shooting the film Dulhan with Hema Kumari at that time. It is said that Jeetendra told Hema Malini about Sanjeev Kumar's love with complete confidence, and only after he fully realized that Hema had no attraction towards Sanjeev Kumar, did he tell her about his desire. Well! After the shooting of Dulhan was over, Jeetendra wasted no time. He immediately called his parents to Madras and asked Hema to do the same. That very evening, both families gathered at Hema's bungalow to finalize the relationship, and Jeetendra got married that very day.
Dharmendra proposed to Hema's family that they should go to Tirupati and get married, but Hema ji requested some time to decide. Jeetendra was disappointed, but with no choice, he finally agreed. There has been much speculation about what happened between the couple after this. Some blame Hema for her inability to make a clear decision, while others blame Jeetendra for losing patience in making a decision. It is also said that Shobha Kapoor and Dharmendra tried to stop the marriage at the last moment and resolved the issue by convincing the couple. Whatever the case, this period of speculation ended on October 31, 1974, when Jeetendra married Shobha Sippy. It's worth noting that during this time, Dharamji was also constantly trying his best, and during the filming of films like Sholay, Jugnu, Pratigya, and Charas, he cast such a spell on Hema Malini that they eventually married. However, the controversy never subsided. Many alleged that Dharmendra and Hema Malini had converted to Islam to marry again, but neither actor ever admitted this. Controversy also erupted when Dharmendra was accused of trying to create a rift between his son Sunny Deol and Dimple Kapadia, as he didn't want Sunny Deol to compromise his married life like him. Initially, Dharmendra was also against his daughter Esha Deol's entry into films, and it was only after much persuasion from Hema Malini that she was able to enter the film industry.
His sudden demise has saddened the entire family, but perhaps they also take solace in the fact that Dharmendra lived his life to the fullest. He was a superstar yesterday, remains so today, and will be remembered as such in the future.