DHARMENDRA – the man with Golden Heart – takes final bow

By S. Prabhakar

 

Indian film industry’s most handsome, charming and original he-man Dharmendra is no more.   After surviving false rumours about his death, a fortnight back, and after a valiant fight for two weeks, he finally took a final bow on  24^th November, 2025, a few days away from his 90^th Birthday.  

The Desi Dharmendra

At a time when Dharmendra entered the tinsel world, it was the literate and people with a stage background who entered the film industry.    It was not easy for a desi rural rugged Punjabi munda to break the glass ceiling, but our Desi Dharam did it.   With no Godfather, training in acting, and filmy family lineage, he came to Bombay and did not set the screen on fire right from the beginning.    With serious and rooted actors like Dilip Kumar, Balraj Sahani, Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt leading the roost, it is anything but easy for Dharam to establish.   

The first He-Man charts his own path :

With moderate acting skills and not suited for serious and emotional roles in movies, there was no way Dharam could join the bandwagon of the then stars and tread on the same path.   So, Dharam has charted his own path and become the first He-Man and action hero of Hindi cinema, or probably Indian cinema.  

Being a typical Punjabi, he was blessed with a natural, rugged body and charming personality.   Barring the professional wrestler Dara Singh (he too was from Punjab), there was hardly any male actor who could bear his body (going shirtless), flex his muscles, threatening badies with his patented dialogue `KUTTE MAIN TERA KHOON PEEJAVOONGA’ and beat the goons to pulp film after film.  

The Indian audience who had to fall back on Hunterwali `Homi Nadia’ for action movies in 40s and 50s, lapped up the first He-Man and action hero, and Dharam and he has slowly and steadily made a niche for himself in the action movie genre and became the torchbearer for dozens of action heroes who followed him.     Thanks to other hunks around at that time like Sunil Dutt, Vinod Khanna and Feroz Khanna, and much later Amitabh Bhachan, who followed Dharam the Action scenes have become such an indispensable integral part of Hindi movies that romantic heroes like Dev and Shammi too had to put some action scenes though they were ill at ease

The Golden period of  Dharam career:

By 1970s  Dharam has established himself as the most reliable and undisputed king of the action genre.    He groomed himself as the most handsome, charming and with his infectious and famous smile (at all times), he has become a youth icon.    Dharam may not be the romantic variety of hero like Dev or Rajesh Khanna, but he had his own charm and used to floor the younger generation, both male and female fans.  

During this phase, I entered my teens and like many teens, the action movies were my first and the only choice and I grew up on staple doses of action movies – NTR and Krishna in Telugu and  Dharam in Hindi.   Action movies of 70s like Phool aur Phattar, Raja Jani, Mera Gaon Mera Desh, Yadon Ki Baraat, Jugnu, Loafar, Pathar aur Payal, Sholay, Pratigya, International Crook, Saazish, Shalimar and block blockbuster hit Dharam Veer, catapulted Dharam to the top bracket though he was never in the race for No. 1 and then falling from grace and maintained his position steadily for over two decades.  

Working within his own Limitations:

With due respect to the departed soul,  Dharam is no great actor by any yardstick, he couldn’t emote well, could not assign serious roles.   But he created a niche of his own, predominantly action genre, and excelled in that.    In this respect, I always compare Telugu actor Krishna and Dharam.    Though both of them had limitations, talent-wise, both managed their careers so well, sticking to the action genre and, most importantly, developed and nurtured a dedicated fan base.    Krishna acted in over 300 movies and produced over 50 movies, and Dharam acted in over 200 movies; both had career spanning 40 -50 years.  

Dabbling with comedies:

Other than the action genre, if  Dharam excelled in any other genre, it is Comedy.    He had an excellent comic timing and it was easy the break the image of action hero and pull comedies.   He was brilliant and lovable in `Chupke and Chukpe’  ( all his scenes with Omprakash were brilliant), ‘Sholay’, ‘Dillagi’, ‘Pratigya’, ‘Naukar Biwi Ka’.  But his star status, the big banners with which he worked and the budgets of the movies were so huge that he could not do full justice to his special talent of comedy except once in a while working with directors like Hrishikesh Mukherjee

The eternal romantic charmer:

There was a time in the late 60s and 70s  Dharam used to look like a Greek God, so handsome and charming that he swept all the leading ladies with whom he worked.   But his pairing with Hema Malini was iconic and focklorish.  Film after film in over a dozen movies, they looked fantastic and made for each other.    After the famous Raj Kapoor-Nargis jodi,  Dharam and Hema jodi was the most popular and enduring.   Unlike in case of Rajkapoor–Nargis, the on-screen chemistry between  Dharam and Hema rubbed off in their personal lives also and ultimately they got married in 1980, triggering a huge debate and fuelling controversy.    Dharam first wife Prakash being so homely, and he having a lovely and settled family, the second marriage was not well received in the industry and by his fans.    In this aspect also there is also a similarity between Telugu actor Krishna and  Dharam.   Krishna too got married to co actor Vijaya Nirmala when his first wife was alive, without divorcing the first wife.   Till the first wife breathed her last he managed both the families.    Dharam too did the same, kept his first wife and children in the village, till he launched Sunny and Bobby in movies and Hema and her daughters in Mumbai.   The way  Dharam took care of both families and children from both marriages so well that fans accepted it and they moved on.

 Dharam – The great human being:

What really stands out about  Dharam is his being simple, down to earth, natural with great humility.   He was a man with a golden heart.   What was in his heart was on his lips.   None of his interviews ended without his mentioning about his liking of your drinks and drinking habits.   Wherever and whenever he spoke, there was great genuineness and honesty.   Inside that tough exterior, there was a soft, shy and emotional human being.    Both his sons Sunny and Bobby too turned out to be extremely emotional guys, and we often saw all three turning into tears in chat shows.

A Life lived to the fullest:

Overall, the life and career of  Dharam have been very successful and fulfilling.  Someone who started his life in a garage, becoming one of the most successful self-made actors of the Hindi industry who worked with top banners, producers, heroines and co-stars, is not a small achievement.    He charmed his way into the hearts of millions of fans, and every film personality has only good things to tell about him. 

Thanks, Dharam for all the entertainment for over half a century.   There will be no natural charmer than you.  

Om Shanti.

S. Prabhakar

24.11.2025