As tributes continue to pour in following the death of Bollywood icon Dharmendra on 24 November at age 89, old interviews in which the actor spoke warmly about Pakistan and prayed for peace between the two nations have gone viral across both countries.
In one widely circulated clip from the 1990s, the “He-Man” of Hindi cinema described the neighbouring country in deeply personal terms:
“If India is my mother, then Pakistan is my mausi maa (maternal aunt). If these two mothers embrace each other, imagine the peace their children would feel. I pray to Allah, Bhagwan, and Waheguru that we all become one again and live happily.”
The video has been viewed millions of times on social media platforms in Pakistan since Monday evening, with users calling it “a message that still melts hearts.”
Dharmendra, born in Punjab’s Sahnewal in 1935, often spoke about the Partition. In a television appearance alongside son Bobby Deol, he revealed that his first love, a classmate named Hameeda, had migrated to Pakistan in 1947, leaving their teenage romance unfinished. “We spoke heart-to-heart with sighs,” he said, adding that he later wrote a poem in her memory.
Across the border, fans recalled the actor’s immense popularity in Pakistan, particularly for his roles in classics such as Sholay and Chupke Chupke, films that remain household favourites decades later.
As both nations mourn one of Hindi cinema’s greatest stars, Dharmendra’s decades-old plea for unity has found new resonance, underscoring the enduring people-to-people connections that politics has often failed to nurture.
