Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.
© IE Online Media Services Pvt Ltd
Tags:
Dharmendra’s passing has left a deep void in the film industry. The legendary actor lived life king-size and remained one of the biggest stars of Hindi cinema. Over the years, he was also known for his fondness for alcohol, but in an old interview in 2007, Dharmendra had spoken candidly about giving up drinking eight years earlier, a decision he said changed his life.
Reflecting on his long struggle with alcohol, Dharmendra had told Lehren Retro, “I used to drink heavily, but I have realised that it doesn’t go with me. If you want to look the same and keep your stamina, your thinking, because it does affect… it’s the worst thing. Today, I wish I had not touched alcohol. If I hadn’t touched it, I would have been a different Dharmendra. I would have concentrated much more and in a much better way, which I couldn’t,” he said.
He admitted that while he enjoyed life without harming others, quitting alcohol brought him a new sense of clarity and joy. “Now, when I have left drinking, I feel like I enjoy more than what I used to do. Pike sharab khud se door ho gaye thay, chhod ke ise apne paas aa gaye hain,” he said.
Dharmendra said alcohol had become a crutch that masked his strength. “It is the biggest strength which I was covering with artificial things and all that. I have quit drinking since the last eight years.” He added that he had attempted sobriety earlier as well, quitting for six to eight months at a time before relapsing. “This kept going on,” he said.
The turning point came during a flight to Los Angeles, when he challenged himself to stay away from alcohol completely. “I told myself that I would not touch it on the plane. I took it as a test for myself on that plane to LA. The same determination came that I had when I wanted to become an actor—‘I want to become an actor, why can’t you be without drinks?’ And God helps those who help themselves,” he said.
Dharmendra passed away November 24 at his residence in Mumbai, at the age of 89.
Click here to follow Screen Digital on YouTube and stay updated with the latest from the world of cinema.
