Utthara Kumari B

Is it true that the legend is no more? I couldn’t digest the news.

I can’t remember when or how I became veteran actor Dharmendra’s great admirer. Was it his movie ‘Anupama’ or ‘Chupke Chupke’ or ‘Guddi’ or one of those romantic entertainers? But to anyone who cared to ask me in my childhood who my favourite actor was, I would always say Dharmendra.

And ‘Guddi’, where he played himself defined his persona on and off screen -- lovable, charming and graceful. Dharmendra was called handsome, “Garam Dharam”, He-Man. No one can dispute the fact that he was one of Indian cinema's legendary sparklers.

Of his good looks, he would say, he was "embarrassed" by all this talk and would attribute his handsomeness to "nature, my parents and my genes".

Everyone has their own favourite actor, but all owned Dharmendra too. What was it that endeared him to all? Was it his charm? His good looks? His acting prowess? His warmth and humility off screen? It was all these and more.

Humble, he was. I had the opportunity of interviewing him twice for a national daily, marking two milestones in his career.

When I contacted him for my second interview, he agreed and fixed a date. It was the next day but I got a call while at work and Dharamji was on the line. He said, “Utthara dear, I am sorry but tomorrow won't be possible as I am in Punjab shooting for a film."

He continued, "I know you work in a newspaper office and I know you have odd timings. Tell me, when it is convenient for you, and we will fix up the interview." He was worried about my convenience!

When soft romantic heroes and angry young men ruled the screen, he stole hearts combining virility and simplicity with vulnerability. No wonder ‘Guddi’ idolised him and ‘Basanti’ fell under his spell.

Whether he said “Mausi chakki peesing” or screamed “Kutte, kameene, mein tera khoon peejaaonga” or said ‘Basanti’ in that loving way, he gave cinema some of its magical moments.

Born as Dharmendra Kewal Krishan Deol in Punjab on 8 December in 1935, he was a wide-eyed boy when he watched Dilip Kumar’s ‘Shaheed’. After seeing Shaheed, he wanted to become an actor, he said in the interview.

“I told my mother I wanted to go to Bombay (now Mumbai) and try my luck there. She said the elders in the family may not agree. Those days, the acting profession was frowned upon. I was disappointed — but my mother couldn't see me sad and gave me permission to pursue my dream.

“I had won the Filmfare talent contest. Today I can say with satisfaction that God has been kind to me. But it wasn't smooth in the beginning.”

After several heartbreaks, he got his break in ‘Dil bhi tera hum bhi tere’.

He said in the interview, “I felt like an athlete who was determined to win a gold medal at the Olympics. The film didn't do too well, though the songs were a hit. Looking back, I guess I was nervous and awkward. But which newcomer isn't?”

In his initial years, he even played a baddie in ‘Aayi milan ki bela’.

Slowly, he started tasting success. So much so that he earned the epithet of ‘bankable star’ because his films raked in money. And the hit pair of Dharmendra and Hema Malini gave several successful films such as ‘Sharafat’, ‘Raja Jani’, ‘Sholay’ and ‘Jugnu’. Their on-screen chemistry often mirrored their real-life romance.

Once called a handsome hero and romantic star, Dharmendra became an action icon in the 1980s.

Even in his late 70s, Dharmendra commanded a huge fan following. He worked in home productions: Hema Malini’s ‘Tell me O Khuda’ and ‘Yamla Pagla Deewana’, a successful Deol family franchise. In one of his last movies – ‘Rocky aur Rani ki Prem Kahani’ -- he  delivered a performance that you cannot but fall in love with. His yet-to-be-released last movie was ‘Ikkis’, a war drama about a relief life hero.

Beneath the rippling muscles and handsome looks was  a sensitive actor. He had done different roles in a career spanning over six decades: a simple-hearted villager, a slick sophisticate, an introspective writer, an idealist, an endearing but a drunk Veeru to a clumsy Prof Parimal Tripathi who tries to speak “shuddh” Hindi.

Yet, if the word versatile had never been used for him, it's because no one had seriously evaluated his talent.

He was honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2012 but many other major awards and recognition eluded him.

“People love me. That is the biggest award for me. I am grateful to the camera for it is the camera which has taken me to the people,” he said in the interview.

"I love to be loved,” he would always say.

And this golden-hearted hero got abundant love from all.

Coincidentally, the title of his debut film was ‘Dil bhi tera, hum bhi tere!’

The writer, a veteran journalist, worked with The New Indian Express and The Times of India in senior positions. After four decades in active journalism, she now does freelance work.