India, Nov. 24 -- Bollywood actor Dharmendra died at the age of 89 on November 24. Tollywood actor Nikhil Siddhartha is in an interview with Hindustan Times about his upcoming film, Swayambhu, when he hears the news of Dharmendra's death. Expressing shock about the loss of the beloved icon, Nikhil speaks about how he grew up idolising the Bollywood actor. Excerpts. (Also Read: Dharmendra passes away LIVE updates here)

Nikhil says he was such a huge fan of Ramesh Sippy's 1975 film Sholay, starring Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan, that he wouldn't eat food unless it was played on TV. "I used to eat my food when I was a kid, only when Sholay played on TV. Chinnapudu ala unde vadini nenu, chudali, elagaina chudali (I was so adamant as a chil...