Entertainment News Desk – Dilip Kumar was an artist who not only gave hit films but also gave superstars to Hindi cinema. We are saying this because it was because of Dilip Kumar that an ordinary person from Punjab decided to enter films and then became the king of millions of hearts by debuting with ‘Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere’. We are talking about Dharmendra Singh Deol who is known as Dharmendra. Dharmendra, known as the He-Man of Hindi cinema, turned 88 today (8 December 2023). Dharmendra never took acting lessons, but he was very fond of watching films. His biggest inspiration was none other than Dilip Kumar. Not only this, Dilip was also a fan of Dharmendra’s looks and he had complained to God why he did not get a handsome personality like Dharmendra. Well, there is a long line of Dharmendra’s stories. Today, on the occasion of his birth anniversary, know some interesting stories of Dharmendra.
Dharmendra used to get scolded a lot in school
Born on 8 December 2023 in Sahnewal village of Jalandhar, Punjab, Dharmendra belonged to a middle-class family. His father Kewal Krishna was a teacher and mother Satwant Kaur was a housewife. It is said that Dharmendra hated studies. This is because his father also taught in the same government school where he studied. In such a situation, he got scolded more than all the other children.
Dharmendra wanted to be like Dilip Kumar
Dharmendra was fond of films since childhood. Once the actor had posted on social media that he wanted to become like Dilip Kumar after looking at himself in the mirror. While sharing a throwback photo, the actor had said, “Working, commuting by bicycle…, seeing my reflection in film posters…, waking up at night, seeing strange dreams…, waking up in the morning and asking the mirror. , ‘Can I become Dilip Kumar?'”
Dharmendra got his first salary of only Rs 51.
Dharmendra was very close to his mother and always told her about his desire to act. Once, on the advice of his mother, the actor applied for Filmfare’s New Talent Hunt and he received Filmfare Magazine’s National New Talent Award. In this event, director Arjun Hingorani noticed Dharmendra and he decided to cast the actor in his film. Arjun Hingorani cast Dharmendra in his film ‘Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere’ and gave him Rs 51 as his first salary. Once in the show Dance Deewane, Dharmendra had told an interesting story behind being given a salary of Rs 51. Dharmendra had said – I was called to the producer’s cabin. There were three cabins and I was sitting in the middle. I was wondering how much money they would pay me for the film. There were three people there and everyone took out Rs 17 from their pockets. He offered me Rs 51. Even today I consider that amount lucky.
This film brightened Dharmendra’s luck
Dharmendra entered Bollywood with ‘Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere’. His acting in this film was appreciated, but the film proved to be a flop. After this he was seen in ‘Boyfriend’. Dharmendra, who was yearning for a hit film for seven years, got lucky when OP Ralham cast him in the film ‘Phool Aur Patthar’. His opposite in this film was the famous actress of that time, Meena Kumari. The film proved to be a hit and Dharmendra got the jackpot.