Filmmaker Anil Sharma, known for directing some of Dharmendra’s most memorable action films, says the sequel to Apne (2007) will no longer move forward after the veteran actor’s death. The director, who collaborated with Dharmendra across seven films, called the loss both “deeply personal and professional.”
Sharma revealed that the script for Apne 2 was ready and the project had been moving smoothly. The film was supposed to bring Dharmendra, Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol together again on screen after nearly two decades. But the director says the movie cannot exist without the man who anchored its emotional core. “Apne to apno ke bina nahi ho sakti. Without Dharamji, it’s impossible to make the sequel,” he said.
Looking back at their long association, Sharma fondly remembered working with Dharmendra in films like Hukumat (1987), Elaan-e-Jung (1989), Farishtey (1991) and Tahalka (1992). He later produced Policewala Gunda (1995), directed Apne, and even featured Dharmendra in a cameo in Singh Saab The Great (2013).
The filmmaker also recalled their last meeting in early October. Dharmendra, full of enthusiasm even at 89, had told him, “Bring me a good story… I want to do a good film. The camera is my beloved; it remembers me. I need to go before it again.” Sharma said those words now feel even more emotional and heavy.
With Dharmendra’s passing, Sharma believes a dream remains unfinished. “Some dreams stay incomplete,” he said, adding that the sequel can never be made without the man he lovingly calls his idol.
