Fans dote on him for his He-man image with a heart of gold, the film industry knows him for his legendary hospitality and for me, Dharmendra is the ultimate symbol of romance - with his dashing looks and guileless smile he turns all three of us - my granny, my mom and I - weak in the knees. “He’s a dilwala”, “He’s so becomingly innocent” and of course “He’s a Greek god” are some compliments lavished on him.

As for the wonder hero himself, he winces with embarassment when you refer to his looks and his reputation. At his cosy office in Sunny Super Sound, Juhu, Mumbai - he wears his celebrity status as casually as his dark blue denims. As it is lunch-time, the famous Deol tiffin is brought in and Dharamji advises how “brown rice” is easier to digest than “rotis” and then serves you a generous helping of a light chicken-broccoli curry. After his recent knee surgery, he says that he is even more careful with his diet and exercise. He is a great follower of Baba Ramdev and performs pranayam for 40 minutes daily.

A feature that emerges from looking back at the five decades of his illustrious career in films is his complete versatility. Debuting with Arjun Hingorani’s Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tera in 1960, he starred in meaningful yet woman-oriented films like Anpadh ( Mala Sinha in ‘62), Bandini and Soorat Aur Seerat ( Nutan/‘63), Mamta (Suchitra Sen/‘66) and Anupama (Sharmila Tagore/‘66) before taking off his shirt as Shaka in O P Ralhan’s Phool Aur Patthar (also‘66). That shirtless scene made him the He-Man of tinseltown. His sensitive portrayals in Satyakam and Khamoshi were well-received yet not celebrated.

It was in the ‘70s that Dharam really made his mark in the romantic company of Hema Malini in almost 30 films, of which 18 turned out to be jubilees - Raja Jani, Seeta Aur Geeta, Jugnu, Charas, Pratiggya and Dost to name a few. His successes include mainstream multi-star films like Sholay, Chupke Chupke, Dharam-Veer and Hukumat. He co-produced Pratiggya with his brother. It featured the famous Main Jat yamla pagla deewana number and he displayed a natural flair for comedy in this decade.

Dharmendra started his home banner Vijeta Films, named after his daughter, as he launched son Sunny Deol in an action-filled ranch romance Betaab. From the mid-’80’s a decline set in and Dharam began starring in C-grade films before retiring completely since 2004 to his farm house in Lonavala where he grew his own vegetables. He was elected a Member of Parliament from Bikaner. Last year marked his comeback in three films - Life In A... Metro, Johnny GaddaAr and Apne. So after 50 glorious years of premieres and jubilees, the original He-man is back in saddle to gallop into action yet again.

He represents the quintessential Bollywood success story and remains an eternal icon for film aspirants especially for all those back home in Punjab. He is the ultimate macho hero who still has no replacement according to his fans and critics. But the lesser-known facet of Dharmendra’s personality is that he expresses almost all his thoughts in a shayarana andaaz...

Excerpts from an exlusive interview with the birthday boy: It’s not fair, Dharamji, that you meet us so rarely.
(Laughs) We Deols aren’t too good with marketing and PR. But I like to believe that I don’t live in newspaper headlines but in the hearts of people. God has blessed me with a soft heart, I inherit that trait from my mother. She taught us to respect humanity and to seek God in people. If you can’t respect those who you see, how you can respect the unseen God? God isn’t restricted to temple, gurudwara or masjid for me - God is in people.

Is that the reason you look so peaceful and contented?
I am happy because I am back in the arms of my beloved! ‘Acting meri mehbooba hai, mera peshaa nahin. Main deewana tha iske liye, aaj bhi deewana hoon’ Only God and I know how I kept away from acting for the past few years (nods). She was upset with me but I have managed to win her back (smiles).

So this romance of yours dates back to 50 years ago!
I was in the 9th standard when I saw Dilip Kumar’s Shaheed. I was totally mesmerised by the celluloid world. I began watching a film every month. And what started as a spark of excitement had by now kindled into a throbbing flame. I felt the world of cinema was heavenly with those handsome men and beautiful fairies. I wondered why I couldn’t be one of them. When I told my mother about becoming an actor, she warned me not to tell my father because he was a strict Headmaster! She told me to send in an application. I think it was the dua of that naive mother that a talent contest was launched subsequently and I actually filled out an application to be an actor. When I visited my village Sahniwal recently, I went looking for the letter-box where I had posted that application. It was too crowded in the daytime so I went back quietly in the night - that place is my teerth-sthan.

Did you participate in school or college plays?
I was a good athlete, always out in the playground and my friends would often tell me - ‘Why don’t you become an actor?’ But I was very shy, I remember the one-act play I acted in during college days - I had a walk-on part yet I was trembling like a leaf when girls went swirling past me!

Did you take the famous Frontier Mail back then like scores of strugglers even today?
Oh yes, I took the Frontier Mail from Ludhiana in April 1958 for Mumbai. I was choked with anxiety and excitement as I boarded the train to star in Arjun Hingorani’s Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere. I couldn’t believe my luck that I was travelling by first class and was being put up in a five-star hotel in Mumbai.

Was the world of cinema really like heaven?
Soon I realised what a sentimental fool I was. I thought all actors would be such good friends, playing together and laughing happily. I was scandalised to know how false my perception had been. This is a very mechanical, commercial industry with little space for deep relations and love - I find myself intruding into this strange world. Like Jaya Bachchan in Guddi, it was a rude awakening for me.

You were known to be petrified of facing the camera initially. Mala Sinha, your Anpadh co-star, recalls how you were trembling in the first shot which was the suhaag raat scene.
Indeed I was trembling. My shyness is a blessing - it made me play out roles naturally without adapting any mannerisms.

And to think you took off your shirt in Phool Aur Patthar to become the he-man!
I never knew I will be the he-man. I am never happy with my work; I honestly feel I am not as good as they make me out to be. My only attribute is that I have a soft face and tough body. As for taking off the shirt - it happened suddenly on the spot. I played Shaka who swings out of the club and notices an old woman played by Leela Chitnis shivering in cold, I asked how it would be if I took off my shirt to cover her. O P Ralhan liked my suggestion.

Didn’t you have any apprehensions dressing up in Roman frocks for Manmohan Desai’s Dharam -Veer?
Manji said the get-up was to be like Roman warriors and the first thing I did was to train rigorously because thighs are the toughest body to get back in shape. I was showered with fan mail after the release of the film from young fans saying that they had joined gyms. My hard work had paid off.

Of all the characters you played - from action, drama to comedy - which one do you identify with?
Satyapriya from Satyakam - I am like him - my emotions are true and transparent. I am truthful like him too.

Why do you think you and Hemaji made such a wonderful pair? Which of her performances do you like the best?
She and I are very alike, we have the same soul. She is the greatest woman I know. We did 30 films together of which 12 were golden jubilees and 6 were silver jubilees. Personally I like her performance in Sharafat, she was exemplary in it.

Could you sense when you started slipping down?
Sure! It started in 1994. I didn’t go out asking for roles and took on projects that were offered to me. I also hit the bottle by then and once when my bauji came home and saw my bar - he smashed the bottles.

You went into hibernation and resurfaced as an Member of Parliament, could you bring about any changes in the desert town?
Joining politics was an emotional decision. When they said, ‘Acche log aane chahiye politics mein’ - I jumped in the fray. Bikaner has improved a lot - Sur Sagar which used to be a polluted, choked cesspool has been cleaned and around it is a garden - a favourite tourist spot. The traffic has eased out with the new overbridges. It is better connected by rail and road now. Also the girl’s college is doing better now. But politics is a closed chapter for me now.

Buzz is that Vijeta Films is all set to be rock again. What are the plans afoot?
We Deols are bad businessmen. We got no overflow from Betaab, Ghayal and Barsaat, which were big hits. With Sunny’s He -Man and my film with Bobby entitled Cheers! we want to have our banner flying high. I also have Jahnu Barua’s Har Pall. Anil Sharma has a script for us where we three Deols will be seen as father-son conmen.

For a long time now, I have wanted to set up two studios and a health farm and resort at Lonavala, a one of its kinds in India.