Dharmendra on turning a year older, “I never think of how old I am, it is important to think young”

By Subhash K. Jha -

December 8, 2023 - 12:06 PM IST

The iconic actor Dharmendra who defined naturalism on screen in the same way that Motilal and Balraj Sahni did before him, turns a year older. “To be very honest, I never think of how old I am. It is important to think young, live healthily, sleep proper hours, think positively. Baqi sab oopar wale ke haath mein hai. There is no knowing what will happen tomorrow. Make the best of today,” said the affable actor whom not a single soul in the industry has a negative word to say about.

Dharmendra on turning a year older, “I never think of how old I am, it is important to think young”

“It’s all the blessings of the audience and my film fraternity. They have showered love on me and my sons for forty years. This year was especially a dream run for us (Deols). Sunny had Gadar 2 and Bobby has Animal. I got so much appreciation for Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. I couldn’t ask for more,” says Dharamji.

When asked to name his best performances and films, Dharamji laughed shyly, “Mushqil hai kehna. I have worked in so many films for almost fifty years. Straightway, I can recall Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Satyakam, Anupama and Chupke Chupke. These stand out. In all three, my co-star was Sharmila Tagore. We did quite a few films together in the 1960s. Then onwards, my maximum films were with Hema (Malini).”

Dharamji would also like to mention one not-so-celebrated film where he had a difficult role. “I love Dulal Guha’s Pratiggya the most because it was a really tough role. I had to play a truck driver who masquerades as a cop. It was like playing a role within a role. It was a layered character with lots of emotions and drama. I had made to make people laugh all the way. But there was an undercurrent of emotions. It was a challenge. And people loved me in it. Though Satyakam is one of own favourite films, my all-time favourite film is Pratiggya. It came during the same year 1975 as Sholay, so it went eclipsed. But let me tell, Pratiggya was a super hit in spite of competition from Sholay. Just as in 1971 when Naya Zamana clicked in spite of a blockbuster like Mera Gaon Mera Desh. They were such different films. I am very fond of Naya Zamana because it was based on Bengali literature. The film had beautiful dialogues,” he said.

Dharamji’s closing thoughts: “Mujhe aur mere parivar ko issi tarah apna pyar dete rahen (please continue to shower love on me and my family in the same way).”

Also Read: Dharmendra shares proud moment as son Bobby Deol shines in Animal; see post