Dharmendra is one of the most successful and popular actors in Bollywood. In his long career spanning decades, the actor has appeared in a series of acclaimed films like Sholay, Chupke Chupke, and Dharam Veer among others. Recently, Ramanand Sagar’s son Prem Sagar shared an interesting story about how Dharmendra bagged Ankhen.
Story behind how Dharmendra got Ankhen
In an interview with Lehren, Ramanand Sagar’s son Prem Sagar revealed how they selected Dharmendra for the 1968 film Ankhen. He revealed that Dharmendra had only done one film by that time and got the role because of his hand's size. He said, “We selected Dharmendra for Ankhen because his hand was so big. At that time, when we selected him, Dharmendra was a nobody. He had just done Shola Aur Shabnam. But because he could hold the gun, he was selected. Can you imagine he was selected because of his hand? But that is filmmaking."
About Ankhen
Ankhen is a 1968 spy thriller film written, produced, and helmed by Ramanand Sagar. The film was shot across several foreign locations and was the first Indian film to be shot in Beirut. Ankhen stars Mala Sinha, Dharmendra, Mehmood, Lalita Pawar, Jeevan and Madan Puri. Upon release, the film turned out to be a major critical and commercial success. 
Dharmendra's work front
Dharmendra was recently seen in Karan Johar's romantic comedy-drama Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. In it, he played the supporting role of Kanwal Randhawa which was well-received. The film stars Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi. It turned out to be a critical and box-office hit. He will be next seen in the comedy-drama Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya which stars Kriti Sanon and Shahid Kapoor in the lead roles. The film follows the story of a guy who falls in love with a humanoid robot. It is slated to be released theatrically on February 9, 2024.
Apart from that, he is also doing Sriram Raghavan's Ikkis which stars Agastya Nanda in the lead role. The film is based on the life of Army officer Arun Khetarpal who was awarded with Param Vir Chakra.
