Mumbai, June 21 (AHN) Actor Rajat Bedi has opened up about the emotional impact of losing his father Narendra Bedi at a young age.

In an exclusive quote shared with AHN, he recalled being just nine years old when he suffered the loss. He said he was too young then to truly understand the significance of a father–child bond.

The ‘Koi... Mil Gaya’ actor shared, “Father's Day is a time to celebrate the special bond between fathers and their children. But unfortunately, I was not fortunate enough to have my father. I lost him when I was nine years old. I was too small to understand the bond between a father and child. Only realising it when I didn't have him in my life, and seeing other children's fathers and their bond, I felt a huge gap in my life.”

The actor believes that even though he did not get much time with his father, his father’s blessings have stayed with him and continued to guide him throughout his life. “But if you ask me what the one lesson from my father that continues to guide me today, I definitely miss his love. I feel his blessings. If he's not around me also, I feel he's protecting me somehow, somewhere, everywhere. I feel, as many times I fail or fall down, he picks me up, and he clears my way ahead and makes me rise. So I would say this is what I feel with his vacuum in my life.”

Reminiscing about his childhood memories, Bedi mentioned, “I remember being with him on shoots, being with him on the bed, him hugging me and playing a little with me. But he used to be extremely busy. He was a very well-established big producer and director and made all the blockbusters of his life.”

Speaking about his father’s legacy, the ‘Ba***ds Of Bollywood’ actor stated, “My father's left a legacy, and I'm trying to revive that legacy. He's worked really hard and made a brand out of his grandfather in his name. My grandfather, Rajinder Singh Bedi, who was a renowned Urdu literature writer, worked with Rishikesh Mukherjee. He's worked with Amitabh Bachchan. He's worked with Kishore Kumar. He's worked with Prithviraj Chauhan and Raj Kapoor, and my father's Narendra Bedi has learned direction under Raj Kapoor and made films with Rajesh Khanna, who was then a superstar.”

“Then he made successful films with Amitabh Bachchan - Adalat, Benaam and Bandhan. Then he made blockbusters with Rishi Kapoor and Randhir Kapoor. So my father has left a legacy behind.”

Rajat Bedi’s father and late filmmaker Narendra Bedi passed away on October 21, 1982, at the age of 45. He was best known for directing hit 1970s and 1980s films such as “Jawani Diwani” (1972), “Benaam” (1974), “Rafoo Chakkar” (1975), and “Maha Chor” (1976)