Actor Abhay Deol says he went the extra mile in his career to make his own path and called his uncle, veteran star Dharmendra, whom he fondly calls his "dad", his inspiration.
Abhay took to Instagram, where he spoke about nepotism prevalent everywhere. He also shared a picture of himself along with Dharmendra.
''My uncle, whom I affectionately call dad, was an outsider who made it big in the film industry. I'm glad there is an active debate on the practices behind the scenes. Nepotism is just the tip of the iceberg. I've only ever made one film with my family, my 1st, and I'm grateful to be blessed and have that privileged," Abhay wrote alongside the image.
''I've gone that extra mile in my career to make my own path, something that dad always encouraged. For me he was the inspiration.''
Abhay added that nepotism exists everywhere." Nepotism is prevalent everywhere in our culture, be it in politics, business, or film. I was well aware of it and it pushed me to take chances with new directors and producers throughout my career. That is how I was able to make movies that were considered "out of the box".
''I'm glad some of those artists and films went on to have tremendous success." Abhay said nepotism has taken a different side in the country.
''While it plays a part in every country, nepotism has taken on another dimension here in India. I suspect caste plays a major role in it being more pronounced here than in other parts of the world. After all, it is "jati" that dictates that a son carry on the work of his father, while the daughter is expected to marry and be a housewife," he said. (IANS)