Actor Pankaj Dheer, Mahabharat’s Karna, passes away at 68; son Nikitin Dheer says ‘very hard to move on’

Actor Arjun, who played the role of Arjun in the show, shared his condolences on social media.

His son, actor Nikitin Dheer’s Instagram story was shared by many after Pankaj’s demise. The actor had shared, “Whatever comes, Let it come. Whatever stays, Let it stay. Whatever goes, Let it go. As a Shiva Bhakt, say ‘Shivarpanam’ and move on! He’ll take care! – but very hard to do.” Nikitin Dheer who starred in Shah Rukh Khan’s Chennai Express, Hrithik Roshan’s Jodhaa Akbar, and Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi. Nikitin is married to Ek Veer Stree Ki Kahaani – Jhansi Ki Rani’s Kratika Sengar.

While Pankaj played many roles in his storied career, his work in Mahabharat made him popular all over the country. In a chat with SCREEN in 2020, the actor said that the mythological character was now associated with him. He said, “People have loved me and adored me over the years. Even in history books used in schools, if they have a reference to Karna, they use my picture there. I have also been to the temples built for me. There is an eight-feet tall statue of mine, and people come there and worship it. Whenever I visit it, people reach out to me with so much love. This goes to show that they have accepted me as Karna.”

Pankaj Dheer passed away on Wednesday. (Photo: Express Archives)

In the same chat, he shared that over the years, he had been offered other parts in the many remakes of Mahabharat on television, but he chose to decline them all. “I have also been offered roles in other versions of Mahabharat, but I refused it. I have played Karna, and that is it for me. It is not about money. I can make money otherwise. But I don’t want to confuse my fans. It won’t be justice to their love,” he said.

Apart from Mahabharat, Pankaj has appeared in films like Baadshah, starring Shah Rukh Khan, Tumko Na bhool Payenge, starring Salman Khan and Zameen, starring Ajay Devgn among many others. He had also appeared in TV shows like Sasural Simar Ka, Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat, among others.

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