Politics is not everyone’s cup of tea. Veteran actor Dharmendra’s short-lived political career of about five years is a clear example of the idiom.
Old-timers recall that during the 2004 Lok Sabha election, the BJP was scouting for a high-profile candidate to take on the Congress in Bikaner, Rajasthan.
Late Pramod Mahajan, one of the key strategists for then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, identified Dharmendra Singh Deol — the Jat superstar from neighbouring Punjab — as the ideal choice.
Dharmendra was persuaded by senior leaders L K Advani and his friend, actor-politician Shatrughan Sinha, to join the saffron party.
Arun Jaitley also played a role in facilitating his entry, while the newly elected Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje, who had taken over in December 2003, helped overcome his initial reluctance. Advani campaigned for him, helping him reach out to influential local leaders such as Devi Singh Bhati, say observers.
Eventually, Dharmendra defeated Congress candidate Rameshwar Lal Dudi by around 60,000 votes, securing a seat in the 14th Lok Sabha.
However, his tenure from 2004 to 2009 was marked by low attendance and minimal participation in parliamentary proceedings. There was frequent criticism for the “absentee” Bikaner MP, but supporters insist that even while busy with film and personal commitments, he worked “behind the scenes” for his constituency.
The fact remains, Dharmendra made few legislative interventions and rarely engaged in debates, leading many to see his term as driven more by star power than substantive political engagement. “In any case, as with most film actors, the BJP had fielded him to win the seat, not to work,” observers note.
Dharmendra later reportedly admitted that he never felt at ease in politics.
According to associates, he often expressed regret about entering a field that did not suit his temperament. He also lamented that “others take credit for one’s work”, adding that cinema offered immediate acknowledgment, something aligned better with his emotional, passionate nature.
Not surprising therefore, he did not contest again and gradually distanced himself from active politics. Son Sunny Deol has been quoted as saying that Dharmendra “did not like politics” and felt disheartened by its inner workings.
This contrasted with film-industry colleagues like Shatrughan Sinha and Vinod Khanna, who adapted far better to what Amitabh Bachchan once famously described as a “cesspool”.
Sunny acknowledged that the family “did not know the ABC of politics”, though they carried deep patriotism and a sincere desire to serve the nation. He himself won the 2019 Lok Sabha election from Gurdaspur but did not return to contest the seat in 2024.
Dharmendra’s wife, veteran actor Hema Malini. who had campaigned for Vinod Khanna in the 1999 Lok Sabha polls, and also joined the BJP in 2004, continues to be in politics as a multiple time Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha MP.