Remembering Pankaj Dheer

Pankaj Dheer, best remembered for his iconic portrayal of Karna in BR Chopra’s 1988 TV epic Mahabharat, died on Wednesday at the age of 68 after a prolonged battle with cancer. His last rites were held at the Pawan Hans crematorium in Mumbai’s Santacruz suburb at 4:30 PM. The actor had been in and out of hospital in recent months, as reported by our sources.

Beyond Mahabharat, Pankaj Dheer featured in several popular television series, including Chandrakanta, The Great Maratha, Kanoon and Sasural Simar Ka. His film appearances include Saugandh (1991), Sadak (1991), and Tarzan: The Wonder Car (2004).

Puneet Issar on Pankaj Dheer’s death

In an interview with Times of India, Puneet opened up about Pankaj’s battle with cancer and said, “Pankaj was not just my brother in the show Mahabharat, but also off-screen. Our fathers were friends, and our families have known each other for a very long time. He had been battling cancer for a few years. He recovered once, but unfortunately, it relapsed last year, and he has been undergoing treatment since then. Today, I’ve lost my brother.”

He further spoke about their bond and shared, “Our friendship deepened during the making of Mahabharat. He used to call me ‘Puneetos’, and I called him ‘Pinks’. I had met him just two days ago at his home. I am in shock and at a loss for words. I can’t even begin to talk about the good times we shared over the decades. His son, Nikitin (Dheer), has grown up in front of me.”

Do you know Pankaj Dheer went almost blind on Mahabharat set due to a technical error?

Pankaj Dheer, most notable for playing Karna in B.R. Chopra’s Mahabharat, breathed his last on October 15th. The legendary actor passed away at the age of 68 from pancreatic cancer. Since his passing, stories of his on-set days have surfaced: the good, the fun and the near-accidental moments. In one instance, Pankaj told the media about how he almost went blind due to an arrow during a fight scene for Mahabharat.

The Mahabharat fight scene that almost cost Pankaj Dheer his vision

Pankaj said that the fight was between Arjun and Karna. The arrow was supposed to break after touching his brow, but some “technical fault” led it to ram into the corner of his eye.

“When they took out the arrow, a fountain of blood came out. Everyone got ice but I was just able to hear people saying, ‘Pankaj Dheer andha hogaeya hai (Pankaj Dheer has become blind)’. And I was thinking my career has just started what has happened to me?” he said to the media.

He added, “The show was being shot in Film City and it was jungle at that time. There was no doctor nearby. They took me to a small dispensary, where there was an old doctor sitting in that small room. He gave me injections, gave me stitches and bandaged my eye.”

However, actors who play warriors have no time to rest! Pankaj received a call from B.R. Chopra’s son, Ravi Chopra, soon after the episode, to notify him that shooting must continue. Hence, his bandage was lessened so that his face could be shot from one side and the scene was shot.

Not only that, there was another scene when Pankaj was on a chariot. Its welding broke, causing the junior artist playing the charioteer to fall and break his ribs and the horses broke free. Pankaj was stuck on a chariot that was going towards a steep slope, but he had to jump off the chariot. Even though he scraped his knee, he was able to save his life.

Despite such distressing moments, the core cast of Mahabharat were paid only ₹3000 per episode, Pankaj had revealed in a vlog.