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Dharmendra was conscionable different, a antheral who stayed connected to his roots and ne'er fto stardom alteration his cognition towards radical till the precise end, seasoned histrion Sharmila Tagore said connected Monday (November 24, 2025), remembering her co-star of classics specified arsenic Satyakam and Chupke Chupke.
Dharmendra died connected Monday astatine the property of 89 aft prolonged illness.
Veteran histrion Dharmendra passes distant LIVE updates: Tributes determination in
Ms. Tagore has lone fond memories of the antheral down the prima – an affable and cooperative quality being who met everyone, whether affluent oregon poor, with the aforesaid warmth.
“I did not find immoderate alteration successful him till the end. As an actor, of course, helium was fantastic to enactment with, and successful his cognition towards the assemblage oregon radical connected the set, helium was the aforesaid affable, cooperative person. He would conscionable with people, whether affluent oregon poor, with adjacent warmth. I person seen him hugging a antheral connected the streets without immoderate hesitation.
“He was conscionable different. He ne'er forgot his roots and helium would speech astir it openly. He was, arsenic they say, a antheral of the world and helium remained precise adjacent to his existent self... I didn’t spot immoderate alteration successful him with stardom and popularity,” she told PTI.
Dharmendra and Ms. Tagore worked connected a fig of movies successful Hindi cinema but their pairing successful filmmaker Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s films basal retired adjacent today.
They collaborated connected Anupama and Satyakam, some cited among their champion films. Their astir fashionable movie with Mukherjee was the drama play Chupke Chupke, in which Dharmendra played a botany prof who pretended to beryllium a driver.
“For ‘Chupke Chupke’, helium should person got the National Award. He was brilliant. But I deliberation those days they thought drama was not... lone a superior histrion should person awards, thing similar that, maybe.” Dharmendra besides worked with Mukherjee connected Majhli Didi with Meena Kumari, Guddi with Jaya Bachchan, and Chaitali with Saira Banu.
Ms. Tagore said the manager would often tease Dharmendra for playing relatable characters successful his movies, contrary to the actor’s well-established “muscle man” representation successful mainstream Bollywood movies. “Hrishida would tease him. He would archer Dharamji, ‘Forget that you are Dharmendra, the musculus man. Here you are playing a precise bully role’... He would marque america laugh... All of america were precise relaxed connected Hrishida’s set... I deliberation Dharam liked that ambiance wherever helium wasn’t treated specially oregon anything. And we did precise bully films unneurotic from Satyakam to Chupke Chupke and Anupama. They were each precise bully films.”
Accommodative star
Ms. Tagore said she inactive remembers however Dharmendra extended his shooting hours for her during the making of Mere Hamdam Mere Dost.
“I was doing treble displacement – I was shooting from 7 to 2 for different film, and from 2 to 10, I was moving for Mere Hamdam Mere Dost. And we were filming the song, ‘Chhalka ye jaam’. And till 10 o’clock, we couldn’t decorativeness the song. So the manager requested maine to travel the adjacent day,” Ms.Tagore recalled.
The histrion said she already had allocated the adjacent daymorning displacement for different movie the adjacent time and successful the evening she had to permission for Kolkata arsenic her husband, cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, was playing a trial match.
“I had planned to bash that different shooting till 2 o’clock and past drawback the 4 o’clock formation oregon thing similar that to Kolkata... I requested Dharam if helium could widen and decorativeness the song. It was already 10 o’clock... He agreed and we finished the song. Those were huffy days. “We changeable the opus till six successful the morning... Whenever they (crew) were lighting up for the shot, helium would spell and slumber oregon remainder successful the constitution room. We were shooting astatine Kardar studio, which doesn’t beryllium now... He was truthful sweet. I’ll everlastingly retrieve that gesture. I can’t deliberation of anybody other who would person done that. They would person said, ‘Rinku (Tagore’s nickname), we emotion you precise much, but we request to sleep.’ Nobody sane would person done it, but Dharam did. He was different. I was everlastingly grateful to him.”
The 2 actors besides worked unneurotic successful Yakeen, Ek Mahal Ho Sapano Ka, Devar, and Sunny.
