After Hema Malini, Esha Deol reacted at the Oscars Dharmendra In Memoriam at the 98th Academy Awards on television. The actor’s fans thought he was snubbed; however, the veteran legend of Hindi cinema was remembered along with 300 other members of the global film fraternity on the Oscars website. Now, amid the chatter, daughter Esha expressed her thoughts.
Esha Deol reacts Oscars 2026 Skipping Dharmendra in Memoriam segment
In an interview with Variety India, Esha Deol said, “I don’t think it would ever change for my father. His heart has always been too big to worry about such things. For him, life was never about recognition or status, it was about love, kindness and his place in people’s hearts.”
What did Hema Malini say?
In an interview with Bollywood Hungama, Hema Malini shared, “Of course it’s a shame. It’s a shame that an actor who means so many things to so many people in many parts of the world has been forgotten.”The veteran actor-politician added, “Dharamji was popular and recognized everywhere. He never got too many awards in his lifetime. Why should he care about the Oscars? We both were happy to be loved in our country. But awards always eluded him.”Hema also stated that she did not get any awards for her best performances in films like ‘Lal Patthar’ and ‘Meera’.Meanwhile, he told HT City, “People’s love and respect for Dharmendra means a lot to us. The Oscars should definitely mention Dharam ji’s name.”
Learn more about the 2026 In Memoriam portion of the Academy Awards
Hollywood legends Rob Reiner, Robert Redford, Diane Keaton and more were honored at the 2026 Academy Awards in a custom In Memoriam segment that was about 15 minutes longer than in previous years. Even after a long time, netizens noticed that the names of many stars were not included in the TV clip.However, Dharmendra, along with other Indian film stars, was remembered by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) on its website. Among others, documentary filmmakers Saroja Devi, Manoj Kumar, Jayasree Kabir, Kota Srinivasa Rao and S. Krishnaswamy appeared on the list.
