Last Updated:November 25, 2025, 17:11 IST

Saira Banu mourns Dharmendra’s passing, calling it the end of a personal chapter. She recalls his deep bond with Dilip Kumar.

Saira Banu mourns Dharmendra’s passing.

Dharmendra and Saira Banu shared a very close bond, and the He-Man’s demise has left a void in the veteran actress’ heart. Today, a day after the demise of the veteran star, Saira Banu took to her Instagram and shared a long post attached with a series of throwback pictures.

While sharing the pictures, Saira Banu wrote how Dharmendra’s death isn’t just a colleague’s death but a loss of her dear Yousuf Sahib’s “Dharam.” Saira further continued and narrated an emotional story of how Dharmendra once broke into Dilip Kumar’s house as a young aspirant to meet him. As he entered the house, he saw Dilip Kumar sleeping on the sofa, and he stood still until Dilip Kumar woke up. An afraid Dharam then ran out of the house.

Saira further continued and shared how destiny made the two meet each other yet again years later. “It was a chilly evening, and before parting, he took off his own sweater and draped it around the young aspirant’s shoulders. That simple gesture, rooted in pure affection, became the first thread of a lifelong bond,” Saira recalled.

From that very day, Dharmendra became ghar ka aadmi. From that day, “He could walk into our home at any hour, midnight or dawn, and he would always be received with love. There were times when superstardom weighed heavily upon him, when the glare of fame felt harsher than its glow. In those moments, it was to Yousuf Sahib that he would turn. And Yousuf Sahib would guide him, steady him, and remind him of the values that shaped him,” Saira recalled.

Talking about the love Dharmendra had for Yousuf Sahib, Saira shared, “Though fate allowed them to appear together in only one film, Paari, their real companionship was lived far away from lights, cameras, and screens. In Dharam’s home, among the precious photographs he kept of his parents and his sons, there stood one of Yousuf Sahib—such was his love.”

“Today, as I bid farewell to this noble, gentle soul, I am reminded of the towering humility he carried within him, the loyalty he offered to those he loved, and the vastness of his heart—so large that it embraced not just people, but life itself, with gratitude and grace. May the angels receive him with the warmth he so generously offered to others. May his onward journey be blessed, luminous, and wrapped in divine mercy. And may he rest in the eternal peace he so richly deserves,” Banu concluded the emotional note.