Dharmendra shows “desi pavva,” a special beverage from the restaurant “Dharam Garam” that was launched exclusively on the theme of the actor’s films, in New Delhi, Sept. 9. (Shirish Shete | PTI)


With an earthly charm of village huts, posters of his iconic movies and memorable dialogues, a restaurant inspired by veteran actor Dharmendra transports you to the era of the actor’s superstardom.


“Garam Dharam – Dhaba Te Theka,” has everything from the decor, to the cutleries and even the walls framed movie posters, giving tribute to the legendary actor. As a special bonus, the place also features the classic bike from the movie “Sholay,” which saw Dharmendra and his co-star, Amitabh Bachchan sing the memorable “Yeh Dosti” song.

“I had never imagined that I will have a restaurant in Delhi’s Connaught Place area and it will be named ‘Garam Dharam.’ Over the years I have got so many tags, from ‘Action Man’ to ‘He-Man’ and even ‘Garam Dharam,’ for which I am thankful to everybody,” he told reporters here at the inauguration of the eatery.

The restaurant, co-owned by Umang Tiwari and Mickey Mehta, echoes all the popular movie posters of the actor, including “Chupke Chupke” “Dharam Veer” and “Sholay.”

Portraits of the 79-year-old actor, in various avatars from action to romantic, share the space with his dialogues.

The restaurant beams with Dharmendra’s popular dialogues pasted on the walls, from his classic “Basanti” line to the recent, “Pehle ek Hindustani ko samajh lo… Hindi apne aap aa jayegi” from “Apne” which also starred his sons, Sunny and Bobby.

The actor says he was slightly apprehensive with the idea of the themed-restaurant but was convinced because of its unique quality of blending rural with urban.

Dhabas are usually found in the small by-lanes of big cities, so who would have thought that both, a dhaba and a theka will co-exist together in a place like central Delhi.”

The restaurant also offers desi-themed mocktails and cuisines, served in a big-glass and huge steel-plate, reminding visitors of Dharmendra with each sip and every bite.