‘At 87, Dharmendra Waited Till Midnight For His Shot, Karan Later Apologised,’ Recalls RARKPK’s Tota | Exclusive

The passing away of veteran star Dharmendra, 89, has left the film industry grieving. Several names in Bollywood took to social media to send their condolences and strength to the Deols. While went to offer their prayers to his mortal remains at the Pawan Hans cremation ground, others visited his Juhu residence following his last rites. His Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani co-star Tota Roy Choudhury also mourns his loss and shares some fond memories with him from the shoot.

Speaking to News18, he says, “On a particular evening, a scene was being shot with Ranveer (Singh). Dharam ji, Jaya (Bachchan) ji, Shabana (Azmi) ji and I were sitting in the holding area. Dharam ji and Jaya ji started reminiscing about Sholay. And I held my breath. I could’ve

been a fly on the wall and listened to that conversation all night long as Sholay is my all-time favourite movie. To hear the behind-the-scenes from those who were actually there and had made Sholay a big hit, was a surreal moment for me.”

He further recalls Dharmendra being a ‘Zen monk’ on the sets. “We were shooting for this dance sequence. Somehow, it got a little prolonged due to some technical factors. Dharam ji was supposed to wrap up by 11:00 pm but it was 12:00 am. Karan Johar was a little agitated and upset because he didn’t want to keep Dharam ji waiting. He was hurrying everybody up. Dharam ji then told him, ‘Don’t worry, beta. I’m here.’ That man was sitting like a Zen monk on a chair,” he says.

“It wasn’t a comfortable deck chair. It was just a plastic chair with handles. He gave his shot at around 12:30 am. Karan apologised but Dharam ji insisted that he can take a few more shots if he wants to. He assured that he was absolutely fine. I realised that here’s a man who could’ve pretty well thrown a tantrum. But without a whisper of protest or displeasure, he sat through. It was such a learning experience for me,” Tota adds.

Speaking about his biggest takeaway from working with Dharmendra, he remarks, “Post that, I told myself that I’ve no right to complain ever. If Dharam ji at the age of 87-88 could wait on the sets so patiently, I can very well keep my mouth shut for the rest of my life. He had this very calming presence. He was somebody who had been there, done that but was very cool about it. There are some auras that will fluster you but his wasn’t. I’ll remember that.”

So, was he in touch with him post Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani? “No, he belonged to a different stratosphere altogether. He was such a big superstar,” states Tota. But he did consider reaching out to him following his time in the hospital. It was also at that time that he was disappointed with hoax news surrounding his demise. And he calls out those who were instrumental in spreading this rumour.

“My first tendency was to reach out to him. It was like a reflex action. But I thought that he has a loving and able family to take care of him. I asked people associated with him how he’s faring. But I would like to say that it was disgusting how certain members of the press published his obits prematurely when he was fighting for his life and recovering. Is being first more important than being accurate just to have a few more clicks?” Tota says.