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‘Dharmendra put his hand on my cheek and called me good-looking,’ recalls Jaideep Ahlawat: ‘Have felt his hand holding mine’

Jaideep Ahlawat, Agastya Nanda spoke about their fond memories with late actor Dharmendra.

3 min readNew DelhiDec 10, 2025 06:22 PM IST

Jaideep Ahlawat recalls working with Dharmendra on Ikkis.

Sriram Raghavan’s Ikkis is set to hit the theatres soon, and in a recent panel discussion, the makers and cast members of the film spoke about their fond memories of working the late actor Dharmendra, who will be seen in this film. Dharmendra passed away on November 24 at 89.

Agastya Nanda, who is the lead actor in the film, spoke about his fond memories with the late star. He called it an “experience of a lifetime” and said that it “means a lot to him.” He added that he shares a special connection with Dharamji, as the actor has worked extensively with the Bachchan family in the past. “You know, for me it’s very emotional, because Dharam ji has worked with four generations of my family. I had the privilege to share some screen space with him. I am extremely sad that he couldn’t see the love he deserves for the film, and it is very emotional for all of us,” he said. To give context, Agastya is the grandson of Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan, who have worked with Dharmendra extensively.

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Jaideep then joined the conversation and reminisced about working with the late star. He said, “I shared the most screen time with him, and the moment he used to come on set, he used to make everyone so comfortable. I have felt his hand, holding mine, and I think I still do. One day, we were just sitting around and I was asking him questions when he suddenly kept his hand on my cheek and said, ‘Kinna sona munda hai‘ (You’re such a good-looking guy). ‘If Dharam ji thinks that, then I don’t care what the rest of the world says.”

He added that Dharmendra often recited poetry on sets and said, “He got so much love because he used to give it back to everyone. There was a scene where I was driving, and we had to reshoot it a couple of times. At first, one of the ADs was helping, but then I insisted on doing it myself. Once we were done with the shot, Dharam ji looked at me and said, ‘Now you’ll get a driving licence.’ He was sick at that point, but he could still joke around. He was just amazing.”

Ikkis, starring Agastya Nanda, Dharmendra, Jaideep Ahlawat, Simar Bhatia, releases on December 25.

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