Nikitin Dheer remembers father and 'Mahabharat' actor Pankaj Dheer: 'Today I am more proud than ever to be his son and...'

Actor Nikitin Dheer penned a sweet note to his late father and television star Pankaj Dheer and thanked well-wishers for their messages and support.

Pankaj died on October 15 following a battle with cancer. He was 68.

Nikitin shared a video on his Instagram handle on Saturday.

“I am not the best at expressing my feelings.. But I shall try.. It’s said, the only thing that’s guaranteed upon birth is death..We all know it, accept it, believe it, but when one loses someone who is an essential aspect of one’s existence alot of questions arise. On the 15th of October 2025, I lost my Dad, my Guru, my best friend..Shri Pankaj Dheer..he wasn’t well for sometime..it shattered us as a family..” his note read.

The actor explained he was grateful for the support from his fans but was unable to reply.

“After he passed we were thronged by thousands of messages..the people who were younger sent prayers, the elders sent aashirwaad and his friends, colleagues and brothers sent love..we recieved love and respect towards Dad, that no amount of words can express.. I was in no frame of mind to reply to messages,” he wrote.

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In his video he also performed post death rituals for his father with the rest of his family.

“As a few days passed and I saw the continuous river of love he was receiving, I realised that..this is life..not the material things one gathers.. But the love..the blessings..the aadar satkar..all of which is intangible.. All of which my father shall carry to a life after…Today I am more proud than ever to be his son.” “He was the best father a boy could ever ask for..taught me what grit is..what character is..what loyalty is..what persevering is..how one should follow their dreams even if the world thinks you’re delusional. All the life lessons he taught me shall be my north star as long as I breatheI promise..that as an actor and as a human being I shall make sure I do things to make my father proud,” he said.

“I just wanted to thank each one of you for the respect and love you have shown him.. This video is a thank you to all of you.. Who loved him..adored him..” his note concluded.

Pankaj, who hailed from Punjab, started out as an actor in the 1980s, featuring in minor roles in many movies.

His big break came in 1988 when he was cast as Karna in the small screen adaptation of Hindu epic “Mahabharata”. After that, his popularity peaked and he starred in many movies such as “Sadak”, “Sanam Bewafa” and “Aashik Awara”.

From 1994 to 1996, Pankaj starred in TV series “Chandrakanta”, loosely based on author Devaki Nandan Khatri’s 1888 novel of the same name. He essayed the popular role of Shivdutt, the king of fictional kingdom of Chunargarh.

Some of his notable movies also include Bobby Deol’s “Soldier”, Shah Rukh Khan’s “Baadshah”, Akshay Kumar’s “Andaz”, and Ajay Devgn’s “Zameen” and “Tarzan'.

In the late 2000s, Pankaj appeared in many daily soaps “Teen Bahuraaniyaan”, “Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat” and “Sasural Simar Ka”, among others.