The passing of Dharmendra draws curtains on career of one of the most loved Bollywood stars
During the second half of the 20th century, Dara Singh, the well-known wrestler had become a barometer for strength in India. He was India’s reply to Superman. Subsequently Dara Singh launched his career as an actor and was a stunt film hero for many years. However, the Hindi film industry already had its own macho man – Dharmendra.
Dharam Singh Deol, a native of a village in Ludhiana district of Punjab, was born into a Punjabi Jat family and took pride in calling himself a farmer. When in tenth grade, he was deeply inspired by Dilip Kumar after watching the thespian in the film ‘Shaheed’ (1948), which in turn sparked in him a desire to become an actor. He eventually responded to an advertisement of a nationwide talent contest, and had the actor couple Sunil Dutt and Nargis selecting his photographs. From then on, there was no looking back for him.
A very competent actor, Dharmendra at the beginning of his career received an opportunity to work with the iconic filmmaker Bimal Roy in the film ‘Bandini’ (1963). Around the same time, he also enacted a negative character in ‘Ayee Milan ki Bela’ (1964) where he looked more handsome than the hero Rajendra Kumar. That same year, he played the lead role in ‘Haqeeqat’, a war-drama by Chetan Anand based on the Sino-Indian War of 1962. In 1966, Dharmendra played a rugged role in ‘Phool aur Patthar’ which required him to bare his torso. The film became a major blockbuster and made him a saleable star complete with the title of ‘He-man’.
From ‘Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere’ (1960) to forthcoming ‘Ikkis’ (2025), Dharmendra acted in more than 300 films, with his career spanning over six decades. Film directors like Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Pramod Chakravorty, Rajkumar Kohli, Dulal Guha, JP Dutta, Anil Sharma and Arjun Hingorani repeatedly cast him in their films. Dharmendra had exceptional acting skills – although he lacked dancing ability – and was at ease whether he played a sensitive poet in ‘Anupama’ (1966), a dacoit in ‘Samadhi’ (1972), a funny professor in ‘Chupke Chupke’ (1975) or even himself in ‘Guddi’ (1971). Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s ‘Satyakam’ (1969), where he played an idealistic engineer trapped in corruption, in the newly liberated India, is considered his career-best performance. ‘Sholay’ (1975) was one of the career milestones of the actor.
Dharmendra’s career was not completely free from controversies. Manhandling of the gossip columnist Devyani Chaubal, his second marriage to his leading lady in many films – Hema Malini -, all these controversies kept the actor in the news. However, neither of them deterred his fans from loving him wholeheartedly.
In the later part of his career, Dharmendra also produced many films, including those for launching his sons Sunny and Bobby. It is unfortunate that during the prime of his career, Dharmendra was not considered for any acting award, whether popular or government. He also missed out on the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award, even though he genuinely deserved it. The actor did try his hand at politics and was elected as member of Lok Sabha representing Bikaner in Rajasthan from 2004 to 2009. However, he rarely attended the Parliament.
Dharmendra, often described as ‘Greek God’ due to his strikingly good looks, enthralled generations of audiences over past many decades. His departure from the scene will not only make many of his fans miss him, but also draw curtains on the career of one of the most loved Bollywood stars.