Zanjeer - the film, which established Amitabh Bachchan as a face of Angry Young Man in the Hindi cinema, was initially went to Dharmendra who turned down the offer due to a personal reason. During an interview with Suno India, Bobby Deol shared the reason why his father didn't take up Zanjeer, which changed the course of Indian cinema.
"We had a cousin sister in the family who had some issues with Prakash Mehraji (the director of Zanjeer)," Bobby revealed. "One day she came to our house and told my father, 'You have to swear on me, if you do this film, you will see my dead body.'" To honour her words, Dharmendra didn't take up the film.
Bobby Deol also recalled another incident emphasizing his father's generous nature. Dharmendra, reportedly, helped his brother-in-law during a financial crisis and even gave him Rs 25 lakh. It's said he did Satyakam for his brother-in-law.
"I don't know if that was the exact amount," Bobby added, "but my father has always been someone who takes care of people."
Zanjeer, directed by Prakash Mehra and written by the legendary duo Salim-Javed, eventually went to Amitabh Bachchan. Zanjeer was released in 1973. Zanjeer was the first of many collaborations between Salim-Javed and Bachchan. Jaya Bhaduri, Pran, Ajit Khan and Bindu played pivotal roles in the film.
In recent time, Dharmendra was seen in Karan Johar's Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. He also paid his last respects to dear friend Manoj Kumar, who died on April 4.