There was huge anger among Indian fans over not paying tribute to ‘He-Man’ Dharmendra in the main telecast of the recently concluded 98th Academy Awards. While Hema Malini called it “shameful” for the Academy, her daughter and actress Esha Deol has offered a different and dignified view on the entire issue.
Esha Deol: “People’s love is bigger than identity”
In an exclusive interview with ‘Variety India’, Esha Deol made it clear that her father’s stature is much higher than these awards and international formalities. Isha said: “I don’t think it will ever make any difference to Papa. He has always had such a big heart that he doesn’t care about such small things. For him, life has never been about recognition or status – it has always been about love, kindness and his place in people’s hearts.”
What did Hema Malini say?
Speaking to Bollywood Hungama, Hema expressed her disappointment over Dharmendra not being included in the Oscar telecast. He said, “It is of course a shame. It is a shame for them to ignore an actor who meant so much to countless people in many parts of the world. Dharamji was known and loved everywhere.”
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However, he also added that Dharmendra himself might not have been bothered by this, as awards have never been the most important part of his long career. He explained, “He never got many awards in his life. So why would he care about the Oscars? We both were happy with the love we got in our country. But awards always eluded him. Even I didn’t get any awards for my excellent performances in ‘Laal Patthar’ and ‘Meera’.”
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During the live broadcast, the Academy paid tribute to several late international film personalities, including Diane Keaton, Catherine O’Hara, Robert Redford, Udo Kier, Rob Reiner, Robert Duvall, Gene Hackman and Val Kilmer.