Remembering Dharmendra: Partition, Loss of Friends, and First Love – Memories He Could Never Forget

Veteran Bollywood actor Dharmendra passed away on Monday at the age of 89. Born in the village of Nasrali, Ludhiana District, Punjab, on 8 December 1935, he rose from rural roots to achieve stardom that only a few could reach. Dharmendra's childhood was spent in pre-partition India, and he often spoke about those memories. The Partition of India in 1947 was one of the bloodiest and most violent chapters in Indian history, and Dharmendra spoke about losing friends to it.In an interview with actor Vinay Pathak, he said that he was in the 8th standard when the partition happened. "Tab mere dost thay Abdul Jabbar, Akram... hum log itnay pyaar se rehte thay. Kucch bhed bhaav ratti bhar nahi tha." (Back then my friends were Abdul Jabbar, Akram… we lived

together with so much love. There was not even a hint of discrimination.)He also said that whenever he thinks about the partition, he feels very uncomfortable, and added, "Ajeeb si haalat ho jaati hai yaar." (A strange feeling comes over me, my friend.)He spoke about seeing his teacher, Ruknuddin Master, in the bazaar. With his head lowered, Dharmendra ran and hugged him. He said, "Main lipat gaya unsay, ro pada main." (I clung to him and started crying.) He asked him why he had to leave and said he should have stayed in India.Dharmendra also spoke about the heartache that came with India’s partition. On Salman Khan's show, Dus Ka Dum, he spoke about being in love with a girl called Hamida. He was in the 6th standard, while she was in the 8th standard. She was the daughter of one of his teachers and would often help him with his studies. On the show he said, "Main chhota tha, maasoom thi umar meri. Woh kya thi, pata nahi. Paas jaane ko jiske, saath baithne ko jiske ji chahta tha. Woh taliba thi aathvi ki, main chhathi ka tha. Hamare school teacher ki beti thi, naam Hamida tha." (I was small, my age was innocent. What she was, I do not know. She was the one I wanted to sit with, be close to. She was in the 8th standard, I was in the 6th. She was the daughter of our school teacher, her name was Hamida.)He spoke about his fascination with her. "Pakistan ban gaya, Hamida chali gayi." (After the formation of Pakistan, Hamida left.) Though he never saw her again, Hamida’s love made him remember his innocent first love.