His has been a 50-year-long romance with films which saw him try his hand at a wide variety of roles in films running across diverse genres, from romance to comedy to action.

He may have been away from the arclights for the last ten years but for yesteryears' Bollywood idol Dharmendra, this long absence from films, which have been his all encompassing passion these past decades, has only made his heart grow fonder for a tryst with the lakhs of his fans across the country through a fresh innings in films.

Not surprisingly, then, as the release of 'Apne', his comeback venture which also features the three Deols - Dharmendra along with sons Sunny and Bobby - nears its release, Dharmendra seems like an excited teenager waiting expectantly for a tryst with his beloved.

''Apne is my comeback to films after a gap of ten years. All these years, I have been dying to get before the movie camera,'' Dharmendra told mediapersons at a press meet for 'Apne' in the capital.

In a voice choked with emotions, with son Bobby and director of 'Apne' and family friends of Deols Anil Sharma looking on, Dharmendra said,''all these ten years, I badly missed my people - my collegues in the industry and the audience that has bestowed the boundless love to me and my sons all these years.

Infact, I much admit I was a bit apprehensive that the absence from films would extinguish the flame of love between us.''

All of Dharmendra's apprehensions have proved to be baseless specially if one goes by the tremendous hype that 'Apne' has generated in film circles as well as among cinegoers.

What make this moment more special for the yesteryears' star is the fact that 'Apne' also brings him together on the silver screen with his sons Sunny and Bobby for the first time.

''It has been my ardent desire and my biggest ambition, for a long time, to work with my sons together in a film. However, for this to happen, a suitable script had to be found where all of us would fit well as actors.

This is what took such a long time for all three of us to come together in a film,'' Dharmendra said.

Anil Sharma had been planning, for quite a long time, to make a film with all of us together but could not find the right script, he said. ''Infact, a couple of story ideas were scrapped at the scripting stage itself after Anil felt that they would not justice to our status as actors. Then, he came upon the story of 'Apne' which seemed just the perfect film for all of us to come together,'' Dharmendra said.

Speaking on the occasion, director Anil Sharma said, ''Apne is not just another film because it is Dharmendraji's comeback on the big screen. The film is a representation of the stature of Dharmendraji and holds a lot of emotional value to him, his family and everyone associated with the film.''

Featuring the three Deols along with Kirron Kher, Shilpa Shetty and Katrina Kaif as their leading ladies, 'Apne' is the story of a disgraced boxer (Dharmendra) who wants to get back his honour by making his elder son (Sunny Deol) a boxer of international repute.

However, ultimately it is the younger son (Bobby Deol) who steps in to fulfill his father's dream when the elder one refuses to become a boxer.