Siddharth 
One who was capable of mesmerising the audience into gazing at him just by his screen presence, one whose physique actually made fight scenes believable at a time when such scenes were totally disconnected from reality, one who could be comical with as much ease and authenticity as he could be tragic, Dharmendra could do anything and everything. A Director’s actor to the core, he not only had an unparalleled charming face and physique, but also had a rustic authenticity in his personality that was evident on the screen as well. Dharmendra was an actor for all seasons, genres, and acts. No matter whom he was acting against, your eyes were ever fixated on his presence when he was on the screen.
My first memory of watching a Dharmendra movie is unsurprisingly, Sholay. Since then, I must have re-watched the iconic movie more than ten times, and I still ask myself: Was Dharmendra acting to appear a fun-loving, comedic, rustic hero, or was he just portraying himself? Dharmendra is just so natural in Veeru’s character that everyone else, including titans like Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, and Amjad Khan, appear to be portraying the characters of Jai, Thakur, and Gabbar Singh, respectively, while Dharmendra is just effortlessly being himself. Despite spending years (and later decades) in the cut-throat competition of the film industry in a city equally unforgiving to non-conforming outsiders, Dharmendra ever preserved the rustic charm of his upbringing at a small pind in Punjab.
Punjab’s large-heartedness, love for a simpler way of life, and earthy humour were naturally a part of his personality. What is highly commendable and respectable is that he never let the film industry and Bombay deplete these admirable personal traits. These were the very traits that made him appear genuine on the screen in diverse roles. Before Shah Rukh Khan, Dharmendra was that exceptional talent coming from an even poorer family and a smaller place, who made it to the top of Bollywood and stayed there for years. Dharmendra’s life story of admiring the original Bollywood trio of Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, and Dev Anand to trying his luck at a Filmfare talent spotting contest, eventually winning it, reads like a huge endorsement of believing in fairy tales. He may have moved from the village of Sahnewal near Sutlej to the urban matrix of Juhu by the Arabian Sea, but his respect for his idol Dilip Kumar never diminished (as evident through their many interviews and interactions). To me, this shows another remarkable aspect of his personality.
Dharmendra’s body of work is vast. He probably worked in more movies, by far, than any other superstar at that time or since. Many estimates put his name at the top of the list with the most hits in a career and the most in a single year. To be sure, not all of his movies were good (or mainstream), nor did he always get roles that did justice to his talent (especially in the 80s and 90s).
We have already discussed his portrayal of Viru above in Sholay. Let me now pick two more of his roles to show how versatile Dharmendra was. The first is Dharmendra’s portrayal of Satyapriya “Sat” Acharya in Satyakam in a career-defining performance. Based on the short story of Satyakāma Jābāla found in Chāndogya Upanishad and directed by the great Hrishikesh Mukherjee, the movie has Dharmendra delivering a once-in-a-lifetime performance. His expressions portraying the optimism for establishing a just society at the time of Indian Independence are as real as those during the utter collapse of that idealism, as he struggled to stay uncorrupted in a corrupt system. The role challenged a young Dharmendra trying to find his footing in Bollywood, but the maverick Hrishi Da betted on him over actors like Sanjeev Kumar (who played a supporting role), perhaps because of the rustic genuineness on his face. Dharmendra performed both sides of the role to perfection, even excelling in the tragic portrayal of a dying man who has been forced by circumstances to betray the ideals he stood up for in his lifetime. Watching Satyakama, one can never say that they are looking at the screen at an actor who has not been trained. Or perhaps, this lack of training is exactly what made Dharmendra bring the role to life.
If looks could endear him to anyone on and off screen, Dharmendra’s sense of timing is best exemplified in Chupke Chupke (another Hrishi Da’s directorial). The twin personalities of a suave and sophisticated Dr. Parimal Tripathi on the one hand and a rustic Pyare Mohan Illahabadi on the other showed his range of breadth. His terrific comic timing came in handy in his jugalbandi with the great comic Om Prakash. My favourite scene has him asking questions about the English language to Om Prakash while conversing in chaste Hindi. Dharmendra could make you laugh as much as he could captivate you with his charm.
It does not matter how many awards he could never win. It does not matter how many flops he gave in his long career spanning more than 6 decades! It does not matter that he never formally learned acting or worked professionally in theatre. All that matters now that he is gone is the absolutely beautiful, nostalgic memories that he has left behind through his endearing roles. There was never and will never be an actor as charming and rustic as Dharmendra. Om Shanti.
आदर्श और नीति — आसान नहीं है विश्वगुरु बनने की राह