Legendary Film Icon & Star of Over 300 Films Passes Away at 89: ‘India’s He-Man’

India bids farewell to one of the country’s biggest superstars. Bollywood star Dharmendra has died in Mumbai at the age of 89 on November 24, 2025, as reported by the BBC. Tributes poured in across India, including from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said his passing “marks the end of an era in Indian cinema.” Dharmendra inspired extraordinary affection throughout his six-decade career.

India’s Most Beloved Movie Icon

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He often called himself “a simple man,” even as he became one of the most charismatic and beloved actors of his generation.

Audiences adored his warmth, screen presence, and effortless charm. He delivered one of the most iconic performances in Hindi film history as Veeru, the lovable petty criminal in the 1975 blockbuster “Sholay.”

With more than 300 films to his credit, he captivated fans for decades and became one of the most enduring and widely watched leading men in Indian cinema.

A Heartthrob Who Redefined Male Stardom

Songs picturized on Dharmendra ruled the charts, and his romance with Hema Malini made headlines across India. The actor was famously nicknamed the “original He-Man of Bollywood” and “Garam Dharam.”

He was frequently included on global lists of the world’s most handsome men, and female fans were known to sleep with his photographs under their pillows.

His colleagues admired him just as much. Madhuri Dixit once called him “one of the most handsome people I have seen on screen.” Salman Khan described him as the “most beautiful looking man,” and Jaya Bachchan referred to him as “a Greek God.”

A Dreamer Who Found His Way Into the World of Films

Dharmendra was born on 8 December 1935 in Nasrali village in Punjab’s Ludhiana district to a middle-class Jatt-Sikh family. His father was a schoolteacher and named him Dharam Singh Deol.

In a 2018 interview with BBC Hindi, Dharmendra reflected on his childhood dreams and his early love for cinema. “I watched my first film when I was in the ninth standard and I was hooked. I was wondering, where is this heaven where all these beautiful people live? I thought I must find my way there. I felt like they were mine and I belonged to them.”

He once shared that his family was initially “appalled” when he confessed his desire to become an actor.

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His good looks soon made him a media sensation. In the 1970s, film magazines in India and abroad profiled him extensively, and international publications ranked him among the top five and top ten most handsome men in the world, with some placing him at number one.

Dharmendra remembered people comparing him to James Dean and Paul Newman.

“Some people compared me to a Hollywood star, but maine uski picture hi nahin dekhi thi,” he said in a Lehren Retro interview. “I went and watched his film, then, and then I thought maybe from the side, I do look like him a little. Mujhe khud bhi lagne laga.”

His Final Days and Farewell to a Generational Icon

As per multiple Indian News outlets, Dharmendra passed away on Monday morning after weeks of health struggles. He was hospitalised earlier this month before returning home for recovery. Despite inaccurate reports that he had died in early November, his family denied the news at the time. Dharmendra died at his family residence in Juhu on 24 November and was cremated later that day at the Pavan Hans Crematorium.

Across India and around the world, tributes continue to pour in from fans, colleagues, and cultural leaders mourning a star who shaped generations of cinema lovers.

Dharmendra’s legacy lives on not only through his body of work but through the warmth, humility, and sincerity that made him one of the most beloved figures in Indian film history.

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