Rajesh Khanna’s best friend remembers actor’s last day: ‘Akshay Kumar and I were by his feet, Dimple Kapadia was near his daughters’

Actor Rajesh Khanna, who is fondly remembered as one of the first superstars of the Hindi film industry, passed away 11 years ago. He was 69. The actor was seen in films like Aradhana, Haathi Mere Saathi and Anand among many others and at one point, delivered 15 consecutive hits at the box office. On his 11th death anniversary, Khanna’s best friend Bhupesh Raseen recalled the actor’s last days and said that towards the end, he “started living life as his character Anand Sehgal did in Anand.”

In a chat with Zoom, Bhupesh said that he wanted to go to Amritsar because that was the city he was born in. “I asked him why it was so important. He said that going there would mean that he was going to land in Amritsar where he was born. ‘Amritsar ko salaam karke aana hai (We have to go to Amritsar and come)’ he would say,” he said.

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Speaking about the day he passed away, Bhupesh said that it was the “saddest day” of his life. He shared that all his family members were in the room with him, and Anju Mahendroo was by the door. “I remember Akshay Kumar and I were by his feet and his pulse was dipping. Twinkle and Rinke were on his other side. Dimple was near his daughters. Anju Mahendru was also in the house, near the room’s door,” he said. Anju and Rajesh were in a relationship before he got married. They got together again in his last years.

Bhupesh said that Rajesh was very proud of the relationships he cultivated in his life and wished that he got the same friends in his next life as well. “He loved every moment of his life,” he said.