Veteran actor Pankaj Dheer, who won millions of hearts as Karna in B. R. Chopra’s epic series ‘Mahabharat’, passed away on October 15 after a long battle with cancer. Now, days after his demise, his family visited the serene Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh to pay tribute. The emotional visit saw his son Nikitin Dheer and other family members in a heartfelt conversation with spiritual guru Swami Chidanand Saraswati, performing a peace prayer and witnessing the sacred Ganga Aarti to honour the late actor.
Family visits ashram to pay tribute
The Dheer family performed a peace prayer at the ashram and met Swami Chidanand Saraswati, who leads Parmarth Niketan. According to the family, Pankaj Dheer had always felt a deep connection with the ashram and found peace whenever he visited. The visit provided them a moment of reflection and solace in these difficult times.
Spiritual leader recalls emotional encounter with Pankaj Dheer
Speaking to ANI, Swami Chidanand Saraswati said, “Pankaj Dheer played an unforgettable role as Karna in Mahabharat. Whenever he came here with his family, they would spend a lot of time at the Ganga Ghat. Today, his family came again and held a peace prayer at the ghat. They came here with a heavy heart with tears in their eyes, but left with strength.”
Film fraternity attended the last rites and prayer meet
The last rites were held at the Pawan Hans crematorium, with many celebrities paying their respects, including Salman Khan, Sidharth Malhotra, Arbaaz Khan, Puneet Issar, and Mika Singh. The family also organised a prayer meet, attended by several members of the film fraternity, including Aditya Pancholi, Ashok Dubey, Ashoke Pandit, Jaaved Jaaferi, Esha Deol, Firoz Khan (Arjun), Madhur Bhandarkar, Mukesh Chhabra, Mukesh Khanna, Mukesh Rishi, Poonam Dhillon, Raj Kundra, Ranjeet, Ratan Jain, Rikku Rakeshnath, Rohit Shetty, Satluj Dheer (Pankaj’s brother), Sharad Saxena, Surinder Pal, and Tanvi Azmi, among others.
