Yesteryear Bollywood Villain-Turned Sea Captain, Dan Dhanoa Defeat COVID-19 In Brazil

Kolkata: While being on a ship anchored thousands of miles away from home with no countrymen around for company, getting infected by the coronavirus can only come as a catastrophe for any sailor.

Not so for Bollywood villain-turned sea captain, Dan Dhanoa. The 61-year old, who shared the screen with Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, Dharmendra and a galaxy of stars in about 100 movies in the 1980s and 90s, was struck by Covid-19 on board his oil and gas exploration ship, moored more than 150 nautical miles (477 km) off Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro, and more than 14,000 km away from his home and family in Chandigarh.

But unlike the bad guys he played in Mard, Shahenshah, Tridev, Karma, or, the prophetically titled Jaan ki Baazi (Gamble of Life) who went down to the ‘heroes’, Dhanoa was not going to let the deadly virus defeat him.

“Sure, I was worried that I’m in a foreign country and don’t speak Portuguese, the local language,” Dhanoa told media on a video call from a hotel room in Rio, where he is recuperating in quarantine after spending 17 days in hospital. “But I’m a mariner. And having steered giant oil tankers for years, I’m trained to look ahead.”

The Doon School alumnus said that he had been on the ship for 16 days before catching the infection. “I suspect it was some service vendor, possibly an asymptomatic carrier, who brought the virus on board. I am told that 18-20 people tested positive, after I was hospitalized,” said Dhanoa.

He broke the news only to his wife, actor and acclaimed Kathak dancer, Nandita Puri, and asked her not to tell anyone. “My mother is 94 and all my relatives are old. I did not want panic back home. Nandita stood by me like the Rock of Gibraltar,” said Dhanoa.

The sailor said that his phone and laptop were taken away, when he was in the ICU. Since he had to go offline, he asked his wife to tell people on his social media pages that there was a glitch in Internet connectivity on board the ship.

“After getting discharged on April 17, I finally made a series of video calls to my mother and the family, and told them what happened,” said Dhanoa, whose chiseled features helped him bag many modelling offers in the 80s.

“I have to wait for international flights to resume operation and the lockdown to be lifted in India. I am dying to spend time with my family and my dogs. I enjoy my lovely tropical garden and the birds that nest there. I want to see my collection of art and antiques,” he said, naming vintage marine artefacts and artworks by members of the Tagore family, Jamini Roy, Ganesh Pyne and other famous names, among his collection.

Dhanoa noted that the symptoms of the infection were strange. “I had a running nose just for a day, and the next day I started getting a headache and fever. Initially, only my forehead would ache. I thought my sinuses were playing up, but the pain started shifting all over my head. It was like a cluster headache with pin pricks that would make me twitch.”

“No cough nor shortness of breath, but my appetite died and I started feeling weak. Also, there was stiffness in my chest and lower back. That’s when I asked to be evacuated ashore on a chopper,” said Dhanoa. “I had fever and felt pin-pricks in my head. It’s important for people to be aware of the many different symptoms of the disease, go for tests and isolate themselves,” he added.

“At the hospital, the swab test results arrived after four days. They found that my breathing was affected. A CT scan showed fibrosis in around 10-15 per cent of my lungs. I was rushed to the ICU for a week, before being shifted to a normal quarantine ward. Now, I have to remain in this hotel for two weeks, to get my strength back,” said the veteran sailor.

Staying in touch with his wife posed a huge problem for Dhanoa during his time in the ICU. But he found a way out. He would give the nurses his wife’s WhatsApp number, using the few Portuguese words he knew to communicate with them.

“I would write notes in English on pieces of paper, the nurses would photograph the notes and send them to Nandita, who would reply and keep up my spirits,” said Dhanoa, adding that the hospital staff took good care of him.

“I have always been physically fit. Even at this age, I have normal blood pressure. However, in 2017, I had a combined attack of dengue and chikungunya, a few days after I returned home from Brazil. There was haemorrhage in my blood vessels. I lost my hair – which has grown back now – and my eyesight deteriorated. Still, I somehow pulled through,” said Dhanoa.

The former screen villain believes that Indians have stronger immune systems and will do better in this crisis,” Dhanoa said.