India’s Bollywood star, Dharmendra Kewal Krishan Deol, is dead.
Dharmendra passed on at the age of 89 on Monday in a hospital in Mumbai.
Mourning the octogenarian actor, Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, in a tribute, said Dharmendra’s passing “marks the end of an era in Indian cinema”.
The Bollywood star was born on 8 December 1935 in Nasrali village in Punjab’s Ludhiana district and named Dharam Singh Deol by his schoolteacher father.
Dharmendra once described himself as “a simple man”. He commanded extraordinary affection and loyalty from his millions of fans.
Dharmendra, who featured in over 300 films, played several iconic roles, featured in over 300 films, many hits, captivating audiences for decades.
He was best known as Veeru, in the 1975 blockbuster, Sholay.
The octogenarian actor, who was once dubbed the “original He-Man of Bollywood” and “Garam (hot) Dharam”, once made it to global lists of “most handsome men” at the peak of his success. Even female fans were known to sleep with his photographs under their pillows.
Dharmendra is survived by two wives, Prakash Kaur and Hema Malini; six children, Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol, Esha Deol, Ahana Deol, Vijeta, and Ajeeta Deol; and thirteen grandchildren.
