Inside He-Man’s brief political chapter and why Dharmendra chose to walk away

He-man of the Bollywood, a Cinema legend who became a household name in India with his action-packed roles, defined six decades of the Mumbai-based Hindi film industry. Dharmendra Deol also had a brief stint in politics. He served as a Member of Parliament (MP) from Rajasthan's Bikaner in the 14th Lok Sabha (2004–2009).

Dharmendra Forayed into politics in 2004 when he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the peak of the "India Shining" campaign led by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

The India Shining did not work out for the BJP led by stalwarts like Vajpayee and Lal Krishna Advani. Still, backed by his immense popularity and high-profile campaign support from his famous cinema family, Dharmendra won comfortably. He defeated Congress candidate Rameshwar Lal Dudi by nearly 60,000 votes and gained close to a six per cent increase in vote share.

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Despite the thumping victory, the star found out politics was not his cup of tea. He faced frequent criticism during his five-year term for staying away from constituency matters and spending more time on film shoots. His attendance in Parliament was also below the national average, drawing criticism from the opposition.

Following the completion of his term in 2009, Dharmendra chose not to contest again. Years later, his son Sunny Deol openly said his father never enjoyed politics and regretted entering it. Dharmendra himself had once said, “I did the work, but someone else took the credit. Perhaps politics wasn’t for me.”

However, his family continued to be involved in politics, with his wife, Hema Malini, having entered the Rajya Sabha in 2003 from the nominated category. She later won the Lok Sabha elections from Uttar Pradesh's Mathura in 2014, 2019, and 2024, and continues to represent the constituency as MP.

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Sunny Deol, Dharmendra's elder son, also joined the BJP and contested the 2019 Lok Sabha election from Punjab’s Gurdaspur. He won by a large margin, nearly 83,000 votes over Congress leader Sunil Jakhar.

Like his father, Deol Jr also faced criticism for his low attendance in Parliament, and chose not to contest the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.