Dharam ji is the only person who filled the void of me not having met my grandfather [Mukesh] ever. This is something I mentioned to him on day one of the Johnny Gaddaar (2007) shoot. He told me an anecdote that I was not aware of it all up until then. He told me, ‘Neil, your grandfather (Mukesh) sang the first song for my first film, Dil Bhi Tera Hum Bhi Tere (1960).’ When I informed him that I had not met my grandfather, he told me, ‘Don’t ever say that again. You met your grandfather. I’m right here.’ He was the grandfather I never had.

There’s another moment I can’t forget. Dharam ji’s character Sheshadri finds out that Vikram has double crossed him. There was a moment where he was supposed to slap me on screen. Unfortunately, his hand landed on my cheek. He got so upset.

Now because of the slap, I naturally teared up. But when I looked at him, he had a tear in his eye. The moment the shot was done, he hugged me and said, ‘I’m sorry. I don’t know how that happened.’ I told him, ‘No! This is your aashirvaad on me’.

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Actor Neil Nitin Mukesh fondly remembers late legendary actor Dharmendra, with whom he worked in his Bollywood debut almost two decades ago.

“For me, it’s a loss like losing a family member. I unfortunately didn’t have the opportunity of meeting my grandfather (legendary playback singer Mukesh) ever, as he passed away before I was born. But when I met Dharam ji, he bridged that gap for me completely,” shares Neil.

For Neil, it was life coming to a full circle. “Dharam ji’s debut song was sung by my grandfather, and look how destiny planned my debut with him in the film Johnny Gaddaar (2007). History repeats itself, and how. When he met me, he said, ‘Your grandfather did playback for me, and when I heard you are doing this film, I wanted to work with you.’ I was so emotional back then and still am.”

The actor adds, “Even after the film was out, he met me, pulled my cheeks, and in his charismatic style, said to me, ‘Well done, boy. Well done!’ Seeing him on screen with me was such a pleasure; that moment still gives me goosebumps. When I recently happened to see him in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, it brought tears to my eyes.”

As a fan and having had the chance to work with other members of the Deol family, Neil says, “My heart goes out to them all because they are such a closely-knit family. All his children looked up to him and loved him a lot. I feel their pain because I’ve luckily gotten an opportunity to work with Bobby (Deol) in Players (2012) with Hema ji, and with one of his grandsons behind the screen. For me, they are like my own people.”