Raja Harishchandra is a 1913 Indian silent film, directed and produced by Indian icon Dadasaheb Phalke, and is the first full-length Indian feature film. 

Anna Salunke

1. Movies: Raja Harishchandra, Lanka Dahan, Satyavadi Raja Harishchandra, Bhakta Pralhad

    Anna Hari Salunke, also known as A. Salunke and Annasaheb Saluke, was an Indian actor who performed female roles in early Indian cinema and also a cinematographer. He is credited as the first person to perform as a heroine in Indian cinema when he played the role of Rani Taramati of King Harishchandra in Dada Saheb Phalke’s first full length film, Raja Harishchandra (1913). In 1917, Salunke became the first to play a double role in Indian cinema, by playing the roles of both the hero as well as heroine inLanka Dahan.

Career[edit]

Salunke portrayed the heroine in Raja Harishchandra (1913), the first full-length Indian feature film. He played the role of Queen Taramati, the consort of king Harishchandra, whose tale is told in Hindu mythology. Salunke worked as a cook or waiter in a restaurant on Grant Road, Mumbai, frequented by Dhundiraj Govind Phalke (Dadasaheb Phalke), the director and producer of the film. Phalke could not find a woman who agreed to act in the film; even prostitutes and dancing girls refused. Phalke saw Salunke, who had an effeminate figure and slender hands, and convinced him to play a female role. While Salunke was working for a monthly salary of 10 rupees, Phalke offered him 15 and Salunke agreed.

Salunke also acted in Phalke's Lanka Dahan (1917), played in the Hindu epic Ramayana. Salunke played the first double role in Indian cinema, by playing both the male role of the hero Rama and the female role of his wife Sita, the heroine. However, Salunke had developed a more muscular physique, by then and the audience could see his biceps even as he played the goddess Sita.

Salunke also acted in Satyanarayan (1922) directed by V.S. Nirantar and Phalke's Buddha Dev (1923). He was also the cinematographer on both films. Later, Salunke abandoned his acting career and fully concentrated on cinematography. Besides Nirantar and Phalke, he worked with G.V. Sane (who acted with Salunke in Raja Harishchandra) and Ganpat G. Shinde (co-starred with Salunke in Lanka Dahan) as directors. Last of his films as cinematographer were in 1931.

Films

Salunke, during his film career spanning 18 years from 1913 to 1931, acted in various films including five in the female role, most of them were on Hindu mythological themes. He was also a cinematographer in a few films.

K. L. Saigal

                         Kundan Lal (K.L.) Saigal (11 April 1904 – 18 January 1947) was an Indian singer and actor who is considered the first superstar of the Hindi film industry, which was centered in Calcutta during Saigal's time, but is currently centered in Mumbai.                                                                                                                   

                         

Early life

Saigal was born at Jammu where his father Amar Chand was a tehsildar at the court of the Raja of Jammu & Kashmir. His mother Kesar Bai was a deeply religious lady who was very fond of music. She used to take her young son to religious functions wherebhajan, kirtan and shabad were sung in traditional styles based on classical Indian music. Saigal was the fourth-born child of five and his formal schooling was brief and uneventful. As a child he occasionally played Sita in the Ramlila of Jammu.

Saigal dropped out of school and started earning money by working as a railway timekeeper. Later, he worked as a typewriter salesman for the Remington Typewriter Company, which allowed him to tour several parts of India. His travels brought him to Lahorewhere he befriended Meharchand Jain (who later went on to start the Assam Soap Factory in Shillong) at the Anarkali Bazaar. Meharchand and Kundan remained friends when they both moved to Calcutta and had many a mehfil-e-mushaira. In those days Saigal was a budding singer and Meharchand encouraged him to pursue his talent. Saigal often remarked that he was what he was because of Meharchand's encouragement and early support. He also briefly worked as a hotel manager. Meanwhile, his passion for singing continued and became more intense with the passage of time.

Career at New Theatres

                                                                           
             In the early 1930s, classical musician and music director Harishchandra Bali brought K.L. Saigal to Calcutta and introduced him to R. C. Boral. R.C. Boral took an instant liking to his talents. Saigal was hired by B. N. Sircar's Calcutta-based film studio New Theatres on a contract of Rs. 200 per month. There he came into contact with contemporaries like Pankaj Mullick, K. C. Dey and Pahari Sanyal.

Meanwhile, Indian Gramophone Company had released Saigal's record containing a couple of Punjabi songs composed by Harishchandra Bali. In this way, Bali became Saigal's first music director. The first film in which Saigal had a role was the film Mohabbat Ke Ansu, followed by Subah Ka Sitara and Zinda Lash, all released in 1932. However, these films did not do very well. Saigal used the name Saigal Kashmiri for his first three films and used his own name Kundan Lal Saigal (K. L. Saigal) from Yahudi Ki Ladki (1933). In 1933, four bhajans sung by Saigal for the film Puran Bhagat created a sensation throughout India. Other films that followed were Yahudi Ki Ladki, Chandidas,Rooplekha and Karwan-E-Hayat. As a youngster, Lata Mangeshkar is alleged to have said that she wanted to marry K.L. Saigal after seeing his performance in Chandidas (1934). In 1935, Saigal played the role that would come to define his acting career: that of the drunken title character in Devdas, based on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel of the same name and directed by P.C. Barua. His songs in the film Devdas (1935), Balam Aaye Baso Moray Man Mein and Dukh Ke Ab Din Beetat Naahi, became popular throughout the country.

Saigal picked up Bengali very well and acted in seven Bengali films, produced by New Theatres. Rabindranath Tagore first heard Saigal before giving consent for the first time to a non-Bengali singing his songs. Saigal endeared himself to the whole of Bengal through his 30 Bengali songs.

Saigal's association with New Theatres continued to bear fruit in the successful films Didi (Bengali), President (Hindi) in 1937, Desher Mati (Bengali), Dharti Mata (Hindi) in 1938,Saathi (Bengali), Street Singer (Hindi) in 1938, Dushman (1939), Jiban Maran (1939) and Zindagi in 1940, with Saigal in the lead. There are a number of songs of this era which form the rich heritage of film music in India. Also, in Street Singer, Saigal rendered the song Babul Mora Naihar Chhooto Jaye live in front of the camera, even though playback was becoming the preferred method of singing songs in films.

                               

Move to Mumbai and death

                                                                                                                              

          In December 1941, Saigal moved to Mumbai to work with Ranjit Movietone. Here he acted and sang in a number of successful films. Bhukt Surdas (1942) and Tansen (1943) were hits during this period. The latter film is still remembered for Saigal's performance of the song Diya Jalao in Raga Deepak; in the same movie, he also sang "Sapta Suran,Tin .. Gaa-o Saba Guni Jan". In 1944, he returned to New Theatresto complete My Sister. This film contained the songs Do Naina Matware and Ae Qatib-e-Taqdeer Mujhe Itna Bata De.

By this time, alcohol had become a predominant factor in Saigal's life. His dependence on alcohol had begun affecting his work and his health. It was said that he could only record a song after being fortified with liquor. He survived ten years of drinking; however, hisalcoholism was too advanced for even a single attempt at abstinence, and Saigal died in his ancestral city of Jalandhar on 18 January 1947, at the age of 42. However, before his death, he was able to churn out three more hits under the baton of Naushad Ali for the filmShahjehan (1946). These are Mere Sapnon Ki Rani, Ae Dil-e-Beqaraar Jhoom and Jab Dil Hi Toot Gaya. Parwana (1947) was his last film, released after his death, in which he sang under the baton of Khawaja Khurshid Anwar. The four songs which Saigal sang in Parwana are:Toot gaye sab sapne mere, Mohabbat mein kabhi aisi bhi haalat, Jeene ka dhang sikhaae ja, and Kahin ulajh na jaana. Saigal was survived by his wife Asha Rani (whom he married in 1935); three children, a son and two daughters: Madan Mohan, Nina (born 1937) and Bina (born 1941); and an adopted child, his elder brother's daughter, Durgesh Nandani, whom he adopted when he was still single.

In a career of fifteen years, Saigal acted in 36 feature films - 28 in Hindi, seven in Bengali, and one in Tamil. In addition, he acted in a short comedy Hindi film, Dulari Bibi (three reels), released in 1933. In 1955, B.N. Sircar released a documentary film based on the life of K.L. Saigal, Amar Saigal. In the film, G. Mungheri performed the title role of Saigal. The film contained 19 songs lifted from Saigal's films. In all, Saigal rendered 185 songs which includes 142 film songs and 43 non-film songs. Of the film songs, there are 110 in Hindi, 30 in Bengali and two in Tamil. There are 37 non-film songs in Hindi, and two each in Bengali, Pashto,^[10] Punjabi and Persian. His non-film songs comprise bhajans, ghazals and hori. He has rendered the creations of poets such as Ghalib, Zauq, and Seemab.

Saigal's distinctive singing was revered and idolized by the first generation of post-independence Hindi Film playback singers, including Lata Mangeshkar, Kishore Kumar,Mohammad Rafi, and Mukesh. Lata Mangeshkar and Kishore Kumar has even gone on record in an interview that they consider Kundan Lal Saigal to be their musical guru. K L Saigal became famous because of the 'new' technology of 78 rps lac records and players. Mukesh started his career as a copycat of K L Saigal but went on to develop his distinctive style. These records were recorded in one take with all instruments playing along. Today this may not be possible.In 1970 one such record was priced at Rs15 in today's money Rs1500 for two songs.

Sohrab Modi

Sohrab Modi (1897–1984) was an Indian Parsi stage and film actor, director and producer. His films include Khoon Ka Khoon(1935), a version of Shakespeare's Hamlet, Sikandar, Pukar, Prithvi Vallabh, Jhansi ki Rani, Mirza Ghalib, Jailor and Nausherwan-E-Adil (1957). His films always carried a message of strong commitment to social and national issues.

Early life

        Sohrab Merwanji Modi was born 2 November 1897 in Bombay. After finishing school, he became travelling exhibitor in Gwalior with his brother Keki Modi. At 16 he used project films in Gwalior's Town Hall and at 26 set up his Arya Subhodh Theatrical Company.^[3]Sohrab began as a Parsi theatre actor with some experience in silent films. He earned quite a reputation as a Shakespearean actor, travelling throughout India with his brother's theatrical company and enjoying the tremendous sense of fulfillment every time the curtain came down and the audience applauded. However, with the advent of the sound film in 1931, theatre was declining. To rescue this dying art, Modi set up the Stage Film Company in 1935. His first two films were filmed versions of plays. Khoon Ka Khoon (1935) was an adaptation of Hamlet and marked Naseem Bano's acting debut. The second, Said-e-Havas (1936) was based on Shakespeare's King John. Both films failed.

Personal life

       Sohrab Modi was married to Mehtab Modi, an actress who began her career in his movie Parakh. They married on her birthday on 28 April 1946.

Biography

           He launched Minerva Movietone in 1936. His early films at Minerva dealt with contemporary social issues such as alcoholism in Meetha Zaher (1938) and the right of Hindu women to divorce in Talaq (1938). Though the films did well, what attracted Modi was the historic genre. Minerva Movietone became famous for its trilogy of historical spectaculars that were to follow - Pukar (1939), Sikander (1941) and Prithvi Vallabh (1943), wherein Modi made the most of his gift for grandiloquence to evoke historical grandeur.

Pukar was set in the court of the Mughal Emperor Jehangir and is based on an incident, perhaps fictional, that highlights Jehangir's fair sense of justice. Many of the key scenes were staged in the magnificent courts and palaces of the Mughals, which gave the film an authenticity that studio built sets could never achieve. The charisma of its stars, Chandra Mohan and Naseem Bano, and Kamaal Amrohi's oration, with its literary flourish and innate grace, ensured the film's popularity.

Perhaps Modi's greatest film was Sikander, which immortalized Prithviraj Kapoor playing the title role. This epic film was set in 326 BC when Alexander the Great, having conquered Persia and the Kabul Valley, descends on the Indian border at Jhelum and encounters Porus (Modi), who stops the advance with his troops. Sikander's lavish mounting, huge sets, and production values equalled Hollywood's best, particularly in its rousing and spectacular battle scenes. The movie was rated by a British writer as "well up to the standard of that old masterpiece The Birth of a Nation." Its dramatic, declamatory dialogue gave both Prithviraj Kapoor and Sohrab Modi free rein to their histrionic proclivities.

The release of the film coincided with World War II at its peak and in India the political atmosphere was tense following Gandhiji's call to Civil Disobedience. Sikander further aroused patriotic feelings and national sentiment. Thus, though Sikander was approved by the Bombay censor board, it was later banned from some of the theatres serving army cantonments. However, its appeal to nationalism was so great and direct, it remained popular for years. It was revived in Delhi in 1961 during the Indian March into Goa.

Prithvi Vallabh was based on K.M. Munshi's novel of the same name. The film's major highlights were the confrontations between Modi and Durga Khote, the haughty queenMrinalvati, who tries to humiliate him publicly but then falls in love with him.

Although Modi went beyond Parsee theatre with such themes as illicit passion (Jailor (1938), remade in 1958) and incest (Bharosa (1940)), his formal approach still remained tied to the theatre. He re-created the look and sound of Parsee theatre by using frontal compositions and staging the narrative in spatial layers with copious use of Urdu dialogue.

In 1946 after his relationship with Naseem had run its course (though she continued to work with him in Sheesh Mahal (1950) and Nausherwan-e-Adil (1957)), he married Mehtab, an actress 20 years his junior whom he had directed in Parakh (1944).

In 1950, when Sohrab Modi's Sheesh Mahal was being screened at Minerva Theatre in Bombay, the actor was present at the hall. Mr. Modi noticed a man sitting in the front row with closed eyes. Upset with such a reaction, he asked an attendant to let the viewer out and to return his money. The employee came back to say that the person was blind but had come just to hear Sohrab Modi's lines.

For Jhansi ki Rani (1953), India's first technicolour film, Modi had technicians flown in from Hollywood. Mehtab starred as the young queen of Jhansi who took up arms against the British during the Mutiny of 1857 with Modi playing the role of the Rajguru, her chief advisor. The film was notable for its authenticity in creating the right period and delineating historical events, its spectacular battle scenes and Mehtab's stirring performance though she was far too old for the role. She achieves stirring dignity in the role as she vows to protect Jhansi from all enemies both within and outside. The ball sequence in Jhansi's palace was superbly shot and Modi's characters held great emotional appeal. The film failed to connect with the audience and was a costly misfire for Modi as a box office crash.

Modi however bounced back with Mirza Ghalib (1954). The film, based on the life of the great Indian poet who lived during the reign of Bahadur Shah Zafar, the last of the Mughal Emperors, won the President's Gold Medal for Best Feature Film of 1954. The film beautifully captured the mood of the period, its hedonistic pursuits and the fading magnificence of the court of the last Mughal, where poets like Zauq, Momin, Tishna, Shefta and Ghalib assembled to recite their verse. Mirza Ghalib also saw Suraiya's finest dramatic performance as she embodied the role of the married Ghalib's lover, a courtesan. Ghalib also saw some of her finest singing - "Aah ko Chaihiye Ek Umar," "Nuktacheen Hai Gham-e-Dil," "Dil-e-Nadaan Tujhe Hua Kya Hai," "Yeh Na Thi Humari Kismet,". Her singing is to date regarded as the definitive portrayal of Ghalib. In fact India's then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru paid her the ultimate compliment by telling her she had brought Mirza Ghalib to life. ("Tumne Mirza Ghalib ki Rooh ko Zinda Kar Diya").

Though Kundan (1955), Nausherwan-e-Adil and Jailor (1958) had their moments, particularly the latter in which Modi gave a chilling portrayal of a rational man turned into a tyrant, Modi's later films did not reach the heights of his earlier work.

Later life

       Even after he stopped making films, Sohrab Modi never actually gave up the idea of making one. Even as late as 1982 (when he was 85 years old) and was hardly able to move around, he had the muhurat of ‘Guru-dakshina’. As per his wife, people took advantage of his weakness for making a film and they lost a lot of money by way of advance payments etc., since two days after the muhurat Sohrab Modi fell sick and then never recovered.

Sohrab Modi received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1980. He was the tenth recipient of the award. He suffered from cancer of the bone marrow and succumbed to the disease on 28 January 1984.

Ashok Kumar

Ashok Kumar
Kumar in the 1943 film Kismet
Born	Kumudlal Kunjilal Ganguly 13 October 1911 Bhagalpur, Bihar, British India
Died	10 December 2001 (aged 90) Mumbai, Maharastra, India
Cause of death	Heart Failure
Residence	Chembur, Mumbai, India
Other names	Sanjay Ashok Kumar Dadamoni Kumudlal Ganguly
Occupation	Actor, painter
Years active	1936–1997
Spouse(s)	Shobha Devi
Relatives	Anoop Kumar Kishore Kumar (Brothers) Sati Devi (Sister)

Ashok Kumar (Bengali: অশোক কুমার গাঙ্গুলী) (13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), Born Kumudlal Ganguly (Bengali: কুমুদলাল গাঙ্গুলী) and also fondly called Dadamoni, (Bengali: দাদামণি) was an Indian film actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema. He was honoured in 1988 with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest national award for cinema artists, by the Government of Indiaand also received the Padma Bhushan the same year in 1998 for his contributions to Indian cinema. He is considered to be one of India's finest ever actors, playing leading, negative and character roles with equal panache.                                                                                      

Family

Ashok Kumar was born Kumudlal Ganguly in Bhagalpur, then in the Bengal Presidency and now lying in Bihar, into a Bengali Brahminfamily. His father, Kunjlal Ganguly, was a lawyer while his mother, Gouri Devi, was a home-maker. Kumudlal (as he was then known) was the eldest of four children. A couple of years younger to him was his only sister, Sati Devi, who was married at a very young age to Sashadhar Mukherjee and became the matriarch of a large "film family". More than fourteen years younger than Kumudlal was his next brother, Kalyan (b.1926), who later took the screen name Anoop Kumar, and youngest of all was Abhas (b.1929), whose screen name was Kishore Kumar and who became a phenomenally successful playback singer of Hindi films. Although the eldest of the three brothers by several years, Ashok Kumar outlived his siblings. In fact, he stopped celebrating his birthday after his youngest brother, Kishore, died on that very day (Ashok's birthday) in 1987.

The young Kumudlal was married to Shobha early into his acting career in a match arranged by their parents. Their lifelong marriage was a harmonious and conventional one, and despite his film career, the couple retained a middle-class outlook and value system, bringing up their children in a remarkably simple home. They were the parents of one son named Aroop Ganguly and three daughters named Bharati Patel, Rupa Verma and Preeti Ganguly. His eldest daughter, Bharati Patel, is the mother of the actress Anuradha Patel. His second daughter, Rupa Verma, is the wife of the actor and comedian Deven Verma. His youngest daughter, Preeti Ganguly, was the only one of his children to enter the film industry. She acted as a comedienne in several Hindi films during the 1970s, and died unmarried in 2012.

Early Years (1911-36)

Reverently called Dadamoni (affectionate term for elder brother), Kumudlal Ganguly was born in Bhagalpur and educated at Presidency College of the University of Calcutta, Kolkata, where he studied to become a lawyer. However, his heart was not into his law studies. Ganguly was more interested in cinema, in which he dreamt of working as a technician.

It was the lure of cinema and the presence of his brother in Law Sashadhar Mukherjee in a fairly senior position in Bombay Talkies which prompted Kumudlal Ganguly to move to Bombay (Mumbai) in the mid 30s, where he started off as a laboratory assistant in Bombay Talkies, one of the biggest film studios of that era.

Early Career (1936-42)

Kumudlal Ganguly was happy working as a laboratory assistant, when his acting career started purely by accident. Shooting was already underway of the Bombay Talkiesproduction Jeevan Naiya in 1936, when the male lead Najmul Hassan eloped with his co star Devika Rani, who also happened to be the wife of studio head Himanshu Rai. Rani subsequently returned to her husband who, out of spite, dismissed Hassan and called upon Kumudlal Ganguly to replace him (against the advice of director Franz Osten, who reckoned that the young man did not have the looks needed for an actor). Ganguly was given the screen name Ashok Kumar, in keeping with the general trend in an era when actors concealed their real identities behind screen names.

Ashok Kumar, as Kumudlal Ganguly was now known, started off his acting career reluctantly. His subsequent venture with Devika Rani in Achhut Kanya the same year was one of the early blockbusters of Hindi cinema. Like several movies of that era Achhut Kanya was a reformist piece featuring a Brahmin boy falling in love with a girl from the so-calleduntouchables in Indian society. The runaway success of Achhut Kanya cemented Ashok Kumar and Devika Rani as the most popular on-screen couple of that era.

Devika Rani and Ashok Kumar in Achhut Kanya, 1936

The two did a string of films thereafter, including Janmabhoomi (1936) Izzat (1937), Savitri (1937), Vachan (1938) and 'Nirmala' (1938). Their last on-screen venture was the 1941 movie Anjaan, whose failure at the box office brought an end to the legendary on screen couple. All through, Devika Rani was the bigger star with Ashok Kumar working in her shadow.

He started emerging from Devika Rani's considerable shadow owing to pairing opposite Leela Chitnis, another actress who was senior to him in age as well as stature. Back to back successes with Kangan (1939), Bandhan (1940) and Azad (1940) saw Ashok Kumar emerge as a popular actor in his own right. The success of Jhoola (1941), in which he starred opposite Leela Chitnis, established him as one of the most bankable actors of the era.

Stardom (1943-50)

The Gyan Mukherjee directed 1943 movie Kismet, featuring Ashok Kumar as the first anti-hero in Indian Cinema smashed all existing box office records, becoming the first Hindi movie to gross 1 crore at the box office. The success of Kismet made Ashok Kumar the first superstar of Indian cinema. Such was his popularity at the time that (in the words of Manto) "Ashok’s popularity grew each passing day. He seldom ventured out, but wherever he was spotted, he was mobbed. Traffic would come to a stop and often the police would have to use lathis to disperse his fans."

Post Kismet, Ashok Kumar became the most bankable star of the era, delivering a succession of box office successes with movies like Chal Chal Re Naujawan (1944), Shikari (1946), Sajan (1947), Mahal (1949), Sangram (1950) and Samadhi (1950).

He produced several films for Bombay Talkies during the final years of the company including Ziddi (1948), which established the careers of Dev Anand and Pran, Neelkamal(1947), which marked the debut of Raj Kapoor, and the famous Mahal in 1949 in which he co-starred with Madhubala.

Post-Stardom (1950s)

With the advent of the 50s Ashok Kumar switched over to more mature roles, with the exception of the 1958 classic Howrah Bridge. Despite the arrival of a younger crop of stars like Dev Anand, Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor, Ashok Kumar remained one of the stars of the era with hits like Afsana (1951), Nau Bahar (1952), Parineeta (1953), Bandish (1955) and EK Hi Raasta (1956). His most successful film of that era was Deedar (1951), in which he played second fiddle to Dilip Kumar.

Ashok Kumar appeared in several movies opposite Meena Kumari and Kamini Kaushal (with whom he was rumoured to have an affair) in the 50s. He played the suave cigarette-smoking criminal or police officer in several films in the mid to late 50s, in what was the Indian film-noir movement.

Late Career (1960 to 1980)

By the 60s, Ashok Kumar switched over to character roles, variously playing the parent, uncle or grandparent, being careful never to be typecast. From a judge in Kanoon (1960), an aging freedom fighter in Bandini (1963), an aging priest in Chitralekha (1964), a vicious zamindar in Jawaab (1970) and a criminal in Victoria 203 (1971), he played a wide variety of roles.

Ashok Kumar played an important role in several landmark movies in the 60s and 70s, including Jewel Thief (1967), Aashirwad (1968) (for which he won a Filmfare Award as well as National Award in 1969), Purab aur Pashchim (1970), Pakeezah (1972), Mili (1975), Chhoti Si Baat (1975) and Khoobsurat (1980).

Last years and death

He acted in fewer films in the 1980s and 1990s and occasionally appeared on television, most famously anchoring the first Indian soap opera Hum Log and appearing as the title character in the unforgettable Bahadur Shah Zafar. He is today largely remembered for his television appearances in the 1980s.

Ashok Kumar's last film role was in the 1997 movie Aankhon Mein Tum Ho. Besides acting, he was an avid painter and a practitioner of homeopathy. A qualified homoeopath, Ashok Kumar earned a reputation for conjuring up miracle cure. Altogether, he starred in over 275 films. He has done more than 30 Bengali dramas in Dhakuria.

Ashok Kumar died at the age of 90 in Mumbai on 10 December 2001 of heart failure at his residence in Chembur. The then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee described him as "an inspiration... for many generations of aspiring actors."

Legacy

Ashok Kumar is widely regarded as a pioneering actor who introduced natural acting to Hindi cinema. He was the first superstar of Hindi cinema as well as the first lead actor to play an anti-hero. He also became the first star to reinvent himself, enjoying a long and hugely successful career as a character actor.

Ashok Kumar is also credited with mentoring several personalities who went on to make significant contributions to Indian cinema. As producer with Bombay Talkies, Ashok Kumar gave Dev Anand his first break in Ziddi (1948), which also established Pran (then a struggling actor who had just fled to India during partition) as one of the leading villains of the era. The 1949 film Mahal, starring Ashok Kumar and made under his watch at Bombay Talkies launched the career of Madhubala, one of the leading actresses of the 1950s. The legendary song 'aayega aanewala' from Mahal was the turning point in the career of a hitherto little known young singer called Lata Mangeshkar.

Off the screen, Ashok Kumar gave B.R. Chopra (then a film critic and unsuccessful filmmaker) his first break as director with the 1951 film Afsana. The success of Afsana established Chopra as a respected filmmaker. Ashok Kumar also played mentor to his assistant at Bombay Talkies, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, who went on to become one of the great directors of Hindi cinema. He was the lucky mascot for a promising young director called Shakti Samanta in the late 50s, delivering a series of hits with Inspector (1956), Howrah Bridge (1958) and Detective (1958) which helped the young man establish himself as a successful director. Shakti Samanta would go on to deliver several movies in the 60s and 70s which are regarded today as classics.

Ashok Kumar also paved the way for his younger brothers Kalyan (Anup) and Kishore Kumar. While Anup is best remembered for his role in Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958), Kishore went on to become a legendary singer. Arguably, Kishore is today the most popular of the brothers.

The distinctive style and mannerisms that Ashok Kumar adopted in his late career still remains extremely popular among mimicry artists

Pradeep Kumar

Pradeep Kumar (Bengali) (born Pradeep Batabyal; 4 January 1925 - 27 October 2001) was an Indian actor in Bengali and Hindifilms.

Career

When Kumar was 17 years old, he decided to take up acting. His started his film career in Bengali films. His notable roles in Bengali films were in Alaknanda(1947) directed by renowned filmmaker Debaki Bose and in '42 (1951).

Pradeep Kumar Batabayal then shifted to Bombay and Filmistan studios, and had an important role in the film Anand Math (1952). He played the lead role with Bina Rai in Anarkali(1953) and with Vyjayanthimala in Nagin (1954). Both films were very popular and had songs that added to the movies success. He had a spate of releases in the second half of the 1950s. He did not enjoy as much success in the 1960s, though Ghoonghat (1960) , Taj Mahal (1963) and Aarti were successful. He worked with Meena Kumari in 7 films i.e.Adil-E-Jahangir, Bandhan, Chitralekha, Bahu Begum, Bheegi Raat, Aarti & Noorjehan & with Mala Sinha in 8 films i.e. Naya Zamana, Hamlet, Baadshah, Detective, Fashion, Ek Shola, Duniya Na Maane, and Mitti Mein Sona.

He did not get to act in lead roles with the newer heroines of the 1960s like Sadhana, Saira Banu, Babita or Sharmila Tagore, though he did work with Asha Parekh in Ghoonghatand Meri Surat Teri Aankhen & with Waheeda Rehman in Raakhi(1963). In 1969, he moved to character roles with Sambandh and Mehboob Ki Mehndi, but did not have many visible roles till Jaanwar and Razia Sultan in 1983.

He won the Kalakar Award-Lifetime Achievement Award (1999).

Pradeep Kumar died in Calcutta on 27 October 2001, at the age of 76. He is survived by his daughters Reena, Meena and Beena Banerjee who plays character roles in movies and TV serials including Uttaran, son Debiprasad and granddaughters Tanisha, Riya and Hrishita. Beena Banerjee's son son Siddharth Banerjee worked as assistant director inSajid Khan's Housefull 2 (2012) andHimmatwala (2013)

Filmography

Bengali

Pradip kumar played the role of Bandit Mohan (Dosshu Mohan in Bengali), a character based on a very popular Bengali crime thriller series Dossu Mohan.

Hindi

Pradeep Kumar's Hindi Filmography

Name	Year
Aakhri Insaaf	1980
Aarti	1962
Adalat	1958
Adl-E-Jehangir	1954
Afsana	1966
Amar Shakti	1978
Anand Math	1952
Anarkali	1953
Anjaan	1956
Apsara	1955
Arab Ka Saudagar	1956
Badshah	1955
Yahudi Ki Ladki	1957
Bahu Begum	1966
Batwara	1961
Bheegi Raat	1965
Chaitali	1975
Chambal Ki Kasam	1980
Chitralekha	1964
Detective	1958
Do Anjaane	1976
Do Dilon Ki Dastaan	1967
Duniya Na Mane	1959
Dur Naheen Manzil	1972
Durgesh Nandini	1956
Ek Jhalak	1957
Fashion	1957
Gateway Of India	1957
Ghunghat	1960
Harishchandra Taramati	1970
Hawas	1974
Heer	1956
Hill Station	1957
Jab Se Tumhen Dekha Hai	1963
Jagte Raho	1956
Jalte Badan	1973
Kaagaz Ki Nao	1975
Kalabaaz	1977
Kranti	1981
Lok Parlok	1979
Mahabharat	1965
Mangetar	1972
Mehboob Ki Mehndi	1971
Mere Armaan Mere Sapne	1963
Meri Surat Teri Ankhen	1963
Miss India	1957
Mitti Me Sona	1960
Modern Girl	1960
Nagin	1954
Naya Sansar	1959
Noor Jehan	1967
Purana Mandir	1984
Parmatma	1976
Passport	1961
Patrani	1958
Police	1957
Pyar Ki Rahen	1959
Raat Aur Din	1967
Raj Hath	1956
Rakhi	1962
Saheli	1965
Sambandh	1968
Samjhauta	1972
Sanjog	1961
Shirin Farhad	1956
Subah Ka Tara	1954
Taj	1955
Taj Mahal	1963
Ustadon Ke Ustad	1963
Sindbad Alibaba & Aladin	1964
Wahan Ke Log	1967
Zindagi Aur Maut	1964
Khatta Meetha	1978

Mahipal

                                                 

Mahipal Singh
Born	1919 Jodhpur
Died	May 15, 2005 (age 86) Mumbai
Occupation	actor
Years active	1942–1983
Known for	Navrang (1959)

   

Mahipal or (Mahipal Singh or Mahipal Bhandari (1919 – 15 May 2005) was an Indian film actor, who worked in Hindi cinemaand is most known as the lead in V. Shantaram's Navrang (1959) and the song Tu Chhupi Hai Kahan Me Tadapta Yahan and Aadha Hai Chandrama Raat Aadhi. He acted in several well-known films of the 50s and 60s including V. Shantaram's Navrang (1959), andBabubhai Mistry's Parasmani (1963).

Biography

Born in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, where after his schooling, he graduated in literature from Jaswant Government College Jodhpur. Thereafter he worked in the theatre before migrating to Mumbai in early 1940s,

He made his film debut in the 1942 film Nazrana, however the film didn't work, thereafter wrore lyrics for V. Shantaram for four films. He went on to work with directors like Sohrab Modi and later with Wadia Brothers, Homi Wadia and JBH Wadia, however it was his work with V. Shantaram that got him lasting acclaim. He worked in several mythological and historical films with actresses like Nirupa Roy, Mala Sinha and even Meena Kumari. He also did a series of fantasy films based on Arabian Nights including, Alibaba and 40 Thieves(1954), Aladdin Aur Jadui Chirag (1952) and Alibaba ka Beta (1955), which gave him popularity even in Gulf countries. Later in his career, he switched character roles, and appeared in films like Jai Santoshi Maa (1975), a 70s hit. He died in Mumbai of a cardiac arrest, at the age of 86. He was survived by his wife Akkal Kunwar and daughters Shushila Jain and Nirmala Oswal.

Filmography

• Sant Ravidas Ki Amar Kahani (1983)
• Gopal Krishna (1979) .... Bhagwan Vishnu
• Do Chehere (1977)
• Jai Santoshi Maa (1975) .... Devrishi Narad
• Rani Aur Lalpari (1975)
• Balak Dhruv (1974)
• Vishnu Puran (1973) .... Bhagwan Sarvashri Vishnu/Ram/Kishan
• Mahashivratri (1972)
• Shri Krishna Arjun Yudh (1971) .... Shri Krishna
• Sampoorna Teerth Yatra (1970) .... Uttam
• Veer Ghatotkach (1970) .... Bhagwan Shri Kishan/Kanhaiya
• Patthar Ke Khwab (1969)
• Maharaja Vikram (1965)
• Shree Ram Bharat Milap (1965) .... Shree Ram, son of Dashrath
• Sati Savitri (1964)
• Jantar Mantar (1964)
• Veer Bhimsen (1964)
• Baba Ramdev (1963)
• Been Ka Jadoo (1963)
• Dev Kanya (1963)
• Kan Kan Men Bhagwan (1963)
• Naag Rani (1963) .... Sagar
• Parasmani (1963) .... Paras
• Sunheri Nagin (1963) .... Vijay
• Naag Devata (1962)
• Rooplekha (1962)
• Shree Ganesh (1962) .... Bhagwan Shri Krishan 'Gopala' 'Kanhaiya'/Bhagwan Shri Ram
• Sampoorna Ramayana (1961) .... Ram
• Zabak (1961)
• Dr. Z (1959)
• Navrang (1959) .... Divakar
• Akash Pari (1958)
• Al Hilal (1958)
• Maya Bazaar (1958) .... Bhagwan Shri Kishan
• Janam Janam Ke Phere: Alias Sati Anapurna (1957)
• Jannat (1957)
• Aan Baan (1956)
• Bajrang Bali (1956)
• Shree Krishna Arjun Yudh .... Bhagwan Krishan
• Caravan (1956)
• Makkhee Choos (1956)
• Roop Kumari (1956)
• Hatimtai Ki Beti (1955)
• Mast Qalandar (1955)
• Ratna Manjari (1955)
• Alibaba and 40 Thieves (1954)
• Lal Pari (1954)
• Tulsidas (1954)
• Aladdin Aur Jadui Chirag (1952)
• Devyani (1952)
• Hanuman Patal Vijay (1951)
• Jai Mahalaxmi (1951)
• Lakshmi Narayan (1951)
• Shri Ganesh Mahima (1950)
• Narasinha Avatar (1949)
• Banwasi (1948)
• Mali (1944)
• Shankar Parvati (1943)
• Nazrana (1942)

Raj Kapoor

Raj Kapoor
Born	Ranbir Raj Kapoor 14 December 1924 Peshawar, North-West Frontier Province, India
Died	2 June 1988 (aged 63) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Other names	The Show Man
Occupation	Actor, Producer, Director
Years active	(1935–1982 Eng.)
Spouse(s)	Krishna Kapoor
Children	Randhir Kapoor Ritu Nanda Rishi Kapoor Rajiv Kapoor Rima Jain
Parent(s)	Prithviraj Kapoor (Father) Ramsarni Kapoor (Mother)
Relatives	Prem Nath (Brother-in-law) Rajendra Nath (Brother-in-law) Narendra Nath (Brother-in-law) Shammi Kapoor (Brother) Shashi Kapoor (Brother) See Kapoor family
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              Ranbir Raj Kapoor (14 December 1924 – 2 June 1988), also known as "The Show Man", was a noted Indian film actor, producer and director of Hindi cinema. He was the winner of two National Film Awards and nine Filmfare Awards in India, and a two-time nominee for the Palme d'Or grand prize at the Cannes Film Festival for his films Awaara (1951) and Boot Polish (1954). His performance inAwaara was ranked as one of the top ten greatest performances of all time by Time magazine. His films attracted worldwide audiences, particularly in Asia and Europe. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 1971 and theDadasaheb Phalke Award in 1987 for his contributions towards Indian cinema. He was called the Clark Gable of the Indian film industry.

Early life and background

             Raj Kapoor was born in Dhakki Munawwar Shah near Qissa Khwani in Peshawar, (then) India (modern day North Pakistan) into aHindu family to Prithviraj Kapoor and Ramsarni Devi Kapoor. He was the eldest of six children in the family. He was the grandson of Dewan Basheshwarnath Kapoor and great-grandson of Dewan Keshavmal Kapoor, part of the famous Kapoor family. His brothers are actors Shashi Kapoor and the late Shammi Kapoor. He also had a sister named Urmila Sial. Two other siblings died in infancy. They later on moved from Peshawar into Punjab for residence and for education.

Raj Kapoor attended Colonel Brown Cambridge School, Dehradun in the 1930s and St Xavier's Collegiate School.

Career

             At the age of ten, he appeared in films for the first time, in 1935's Inquilab. After acting in several films over the next 12 years, Raj Kapoor's big break came with the lead role in Neel Kamal (1947) opposite Madhubala in her first role as a leading lady. In 1948, at the age of twenty-four, he established his own studio, R. K. Films, and became the youngest film director of his time making his directorial debut with Aag starring himself, Nargis, Kamini Kaushal and Premnath. In 1949 he co-starred alongside Dilip Kumar andNargis in Mehboob Khan's blockbuster Andaz which was his first major success as an actor.

He went on to produce and star in several hit films made under his RK banner including Barsaat (1949), Awaara (1951), Shree 420(1955), Chori Chori (1956), Jagte Raho (1956) and Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai (1960), the last was directed by Radhu Karmakar, his longtime cinematographer, and which won Filmfare Award for Best Film. These films established his screen image modeled on Charlie Chaplin's most famous screen persona of The Tramp. Outside of his home productions his other notable films included Anari (1959), Chhalia (1960) and Teesri Kasam (1966).

In 1964, he produced, directed and starred in the romantic musical Sangam alongside Rajendra Kumar and Vyjayantimala which was his first film in colour. This was his last major success as a leading actor as his later films like Around the World (1966) andSapnon Ka Saudagar (1968) with younger starlets Rajshree and Hema Malini were box office flops. In 1965 he was a member of the jury at the 4th Moscow International Film Festival.

In 1970 he produced, directed and starred in his ambitious film Mera Naam Joker which took more than six years to complete. His son Rishi Kapoor made his debut in this film playing the younger version of his character. When released in 1970, it was a box office disaster and put Kapoor and his family into a financial crisis. In later years it was acknowledged as a classic.

In 1971, he launched his eldest son Randhir Kapoor in the family drama Kal Aaj Aur Kal starring himself, his son Randhir, his father Prithviraj Kapoor as well as Randhir's would-be-wife Babita. He launched his second son Rishi Kapoor's career in 1973 when he produced and directed Bobby which was a huge box office success and introduced actress Dimple Kapadia, later a very popular actress; it was the first of a new generation of teen romances. Dimple wore bikinis which was quite unique for Indian films then. In 1975 he acted alongside his son Randhir again in Dharam Karam, which Randhir directed.

In the latter half of the 1970s and early 1980s he produced and directed films that focused on the female protagonists: Satyam Shivam Sundaram(1978) with Zeenat Aman, Prem Rog (1982) with Padmini Kolhapure and Ram Teri Ganga Maili (1985) which introduced Mandakini. He acted in fewer films by the late 1970s and early 1980s but played notable supporting roles alongside Rajesh Khanna in Naukri (1978) and alongside Sanjay Khan in Abdullah (1980). In 1979 he was a member of the jury at the 11th Moscow International Film Festival.

Raj Kapoor's last major film appearance was in Vakil Babu (1982) where he appeared with his younger brother Shashi. His last acting role was a cameo appearance in a 1984 released British made-for-television film titled Kim.

He was set to direct Henna starring his son Rishi and Pakistani actress Zeba Bakhtiar before his death in 1988. His son Randhir directed the film and it released in 1991.

Death

           Raj Kapoor suffered from asthma in his later years; he died of complications related to asthma in 1988 at the age of 63. He collapsed at the event where he was to receive theDadasaheb Phalke Award, and was taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) for treatment. He was hospitalised for about a month before he succumbed to complications arising from his asthma. At the time of his death, he was working on the movie Henna (an Indo-Pakistan based love story). The film was later completed by his sons Randhir and Rishi Kapoor and was released in 1991.

Legacy

            Raj Kapoor is appreciated both by film critics and movie fans. Film historians and movie buffs speak of him as the "Charlie Chaplin of Indian cinema," since he often portrayed a tramp-like figure, who, despite adversity, was still cheerful and honest. His fame spread worldwide. He was adored by audiences in large parts of Africa, the Middle East, the formerSoviet Union, China, and Southeast Asia; his movies were global commercial successes. Raj had the knack of getting the best out of any one, since he had mastered all departments of film making and even marketing them.^{[peacock term]} When Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru died in 1964 coinciding with release of Sangam, he took the opportunity to create a scene when Gopal ashes were immersed in Ganges, like Pandit Nehru described in his poetic will. His films reflected the Era in which it was made.

He had a great understanding of the public taste and a great sense of Box-Office. He was one of the pioneers of the Indian cinema, who talked about the potential of Hindi cinema emerging as a great revenue earner from the world market in fifties, which has become a reality today.

Many of Raj Kapoor's movies had a patriotic theme. His films Aag, Shree 420 and Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai (In the country where the Ganges flows) celebrated the newly independent India, and encouraged film-goers to be patriots. Raj Kapoor commissioned these famous lyrics for Mera Joota Hai Japani, a song from the movie Shree 420:

Mera joota hai Japani (My shoes are Japanese)

Ye patloon Inglistani (These trousers are English)

Sar pe lal topi Roosi (The red cap on my head is Russian)

Phir bhi dil hai Hindustani (But still, however, my heart is Indian)

The song is still extremely popular and has been featured in a number of movies since Shree 420 was released. Indian author Mahasweta Devi stopped the show with her inaugural speech at the 2006 Frankfurt Book Fair when she used these lyrics to express her own heartfelt patriotism and debt to her country.

Raj Kapoor was a canny judge of filmi music and lyrics. Many of the songs he commissioned are evergreen hits. He introduced the music directors Shankar-Jaikishan and the lyricists Hasrat Jaipuri and Shailendra. He is also remembered for his strong sense of visual style. He used striking visual compositions, elaborate sets, and dramatic lighting to complete the mood set by the music. He introduced the actresses Nimmi, Dimple Kapadia, and Mandakini, as well as launching and reviving the careers of his sons Rishi, Randhir and Rajiv. He was also famous for making his actresses wear revealing clothing which was not very common in Indian cinema.

A postage stamp, bearing his face, was released by India Post to honour him on 14 December 2001. To honour him, a brass statue of his was unveiled at Walk of the Stars at Bandra Bandstand in Mumbai in March 2012.

In 2014, Google commemorates his 90th birthday.

Personal life

     

           In 1940, Raj Kapoor married Krishna Kapoor, who is his aunt. Krishna's father was Raj Kapoor's father's maternal uncle. It was a match arranged by the family, and Krishna proved to be a wife and mother in the traditional mould, which is what the family wanted. Two of Krishna's brothers, Rajendra Nath, Prem Nath and Narendra Nath, later became actors, and her sister Uma was married to the film villain Prem Chopra.

Kapoor is also known to have had a longtime romantic relationship with the renowned actress Nargis during the 1940s and 1950s, despite Kapoor being a married man. The couple starred in several films together, including Awaara and Shree 420. As Raj would not leave his wife and children, Nargis ended their relationship after Chori Chori and married Sunil Dutt. Kapoor is also said to have had an affair with renowned actress Vyjayantimala during the shooting of Sangam. Vyjayanthimala has denied that she was ever involved with Kapoor. She deemed the whole thing a publicity stunt by Kapoor to promote his film. Kapoor has also been linked with the southern actress Padmini. 

Both of Kapoor's brothers, all three of Kapoor's sons, two of Kapoor's daughters-in-law and three of Kapoor's grandchildren were active at various times in the film industry. Presently, his grand-daughter Kareena (daughter of Kapoor's eldest son Randhir) and grandson Ranbir (son of Kapoor's second son Rishi) are currently active in Bollywood.

Awards

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Raj Kapoor

Kapoor had received many awards throughout his career, including 2 National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi, 11 Filmfare Awards and 19 nominations. His films Awaara(1951) and Boot Polish (1954) were nominated for the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. His acting in the former was rated as one of the "Top-Ten Performances of all time", by the Time Magazine. His film Jagte Raho (1956) also won the Crystal Globe award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.

The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 1971 and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1987 – the highest award for cinematic excellence in India. In 2001, he was honoured with “Best Director of the Millennium” by Stardust Awards. He was named “Showman of the Millennium” by Star Screen Awards in 2002.

In June 2011, Noah Cowan, Artistic Director of TIFF Bell Lightbox, and Sabbas Joseph, Director, Wizcraft along with members of the Kapoor family came together to pay tribute to the life and work of Indian actor, director, mogul and legend Raj Kapoor, as presented in partnership by TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival), the International Indian Film Academy (IIFA), and the Government of Ontario.Indian Mirror Reports suggest Kapoor will be inducted onto the Brampton Walk of Fame in Ontario, Canada.

Dilip Kumar

Dilip Kumar
Dilip Kumar in 2006
Born	Muhammad Yusuf Khan 12 December 1922 (age 92) Peshawar, North-West Frontier Province, British India (now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan)
Residence	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Nationality	Indian
Ethnicity	Hindko-speaking Awan[1]
Occupation	Film actor Producer
Years active	1944–1998
Religion	Islam [2]
Spouse(s)	Saira Banu (1966–present) Asma (1979–1982)
Awards	Padma Vibhushan 2015[3] Padma Bhushan 1991
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         Dilip Kumar (born Muhammad Yusuf Khan on 11 December 1922) is an Indian film actor also known as Tragedy King, and described as "the ultimate method actor" by Satyajit Ray. He debuted as an actor in the film Jwar Bhata in 1944 produced by Bombay Talkies. His career has spanned over six decades and with over 60 films. He starred in films of a variety of genres such as the romanticAndaz (1949), the swashbuckling Aan (1952), the dramatic Devdas (1955), the comical Azaad (1955), the historical Mughal-e-Azam(1960) and the social Ganga Jamuna (1961).

Dilip Kumar has acted with actress Vyjayanthimala the most, where they both had acted seven films together including the former's home production Gunga Jamuna resulting in great on-screen chemistry and an alleged affair between them.

In 1976, Dilip Kumar took a five-year break from film performances and returned with a character role in the film Kranti (1981) and continued his career playing leading roles in films such as Shakti (1982), Karma (1986) and Saudagar (1991). His last film was Qila(1998). .

He is the first recipient of Filmfare Best Actor Award (1954) and still holds the record for the most number of Filmfare awards won for that category with eight wins. Critics acclaimed him among one of the greatest actors in the history of Hindi cinema.^[9][10][11]

The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan award in 1991, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994 and thePadma Vibhushan in 2015 for his contributions towards Indian cinema and nominated him to Rajya Sabha, the upper house of Indian parliament for a term.

The Government of Pakistan honoured him with its highest civilian honour Nishan-e-Imtiaz in 1997.

Early life

          Dilip Kumar was born Yusuf Khan into a Hindko-speaking Awan family of 12 children on 11 December 1922 at his house in theQissa Khawani Bazaar area of Peshawar, in what is now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. His father, Lala Ghulam Sarwar, was a landlord and fruit merchant who owned orchards in Peshawar and Deolali (in Maharashtra, India). Dilip Kumar did schooling from prestigious Barnes School, Deolali, near Nasik. In the late 1930s, his family of 12 members relocated to Mumbai. Around 1940, Dilip Kumar left home for Pune where he started his career as a canteen owner and a dry fruit supplier. In 1943, actress Devika Rani, who owned Bombay Talkies spotted Dilip Kumar in Aundh military canteens Pune, and cast him with a lead role in the film Jwar Bhata (1944), which marked Dilip Kumar's entry into the Hindi film industry. Hindi author Bhagwati Charan Verma gave him the screen name Dilip Kumar.

Career

1940s

      Dilip Kumar's first film, Jwar Bhata (1944) went unnoticed, it was Jugnu (1947) in which he starred alongside Noor Jehan that became his first major hit at the box office. His next major hit was the 1948 film Shaheed. He got his breakthrough role with Mehboob Khan's Andaz (1949) in which he starred alongside Raj Kapoor and Nargis in a love triangle story.

1950s

       He went on to have success in the 1950s with playing leading roles in romantic films like Jogan (1950), Deedar (1951), Daag (1952), Devdas (1955), Yahudi (1958) andMadhumati (1958). He also played an anti-hero in Mehboob Khan's Amar (1954). These films established his screen image as the "Tragedy King". He also starred in many social drama films like Footpath (1953), Naya Daur (1957), Musafir (1957), Taraana (1951) and Paigham (1959). He was the first actor to win the Filmfare Best Actor Award for Daagand went onto win it a further seven times in his career. He formed popular on-screen pairings with many of the top actresses at the time including Madhubala, Vyjayanthimala,Nargis, Nimmi, Meena Kumari, and Kamini Kaushal. In an attempt to shed his "tragedy king" image, Dilip Kumar took up his psychiatrist's suggestion that he take on lighthearted roles such as Mehboob Khan's blockbuster Aan (1952), his first film in technicolour in which he played a swashbuckling peasant. He had further success with lighter roles in Azaad(1955) and Kohinoor (1960) In 1960 he portrayed Prince Salim in K. Asif's big-budget epic historical film Mughal-e-Azam which as of 2008 was the second highest grossing film in Hindi film history. The film told the story of Prince Salim who revolts against his father Akbar (played by Prithviraj Kapoor) and falls in love with a courtesan (played byMadhubala). The film was mostly shot in black and white, only some scenes in the latter half of the film in colour. 44 years after its original release, it was fully colourized and re-released in 2004.

1960s

       In 1961 he produced and starred in Ganga Jamuna in which he starred opposite his frequent leading lady, Vyjayanthimala and his brother Nasir Khan, this was the only film he produced. In 1962 British director David Lean offered him the role of "Sherif Ali" in his film Lawrence of Arabia (1962), but Dilip Kumar declined to perform in the movie. The role eventually went to Omar Sharif, the Egyptian actor. His next film Leader (1964) was a below average grosser at the box office.] He was the co-director alongside Abdul Rashid Kardar of his next release Dil Diya Dard Liya in 1966 but was uncredited as director. In 1967 Kumar played a dual role of twins separated at birth in the hit film Ram Aur Shyam. In 1968 he starred alongside Manoj Kumar and Waheeda Rehman in Aadmi.

1970s

     His career slumped in the 1970s with films like Dastaan (1972) and Bairaag (1976), the latter in which he played triple roles failing at the box office. He starred alongside his real-life wife Saira Banu in Gopi (1970), Bengali film Sagina Mahato (1970) and Bairaag (1976) but all three failed to do well at the box office. He took a five-year hiatus from films from 1976 to 1981.

1980s

      In 1981, he returned to films with the multi-starrer Kranti which was the biggest hit of the year. Appearing alongside an ensemble cast including Manoj Kumar, Shashi Kapoor,Hema Malini and Shatrughan Sinha, he played the title role as a revolutionary fighting for India's independence from British rule. He then formed a successful collaboration withSubhash Ghai starting with Vidhaata (1982) in which he starred alongside Sanjay Dutt, Sanjeev Kumar and Shammi Kapoor. Later that year he starred alongside the reigning superstar of the time Amitabh Bachchan in Ramesh Sippy's Shakti for which he won yet another Filmfare Award for Best Actor. In 1984 he starred in Yash Chopra's Mashaal and Ramesh Talwar's Duniya opposite Anil Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor respectively.

      His second collaboration with Subhash Ghai came with the 1986 action film Karma. In this film, Kumar played a jailor who hires three men (played by Naseeruddin Shah, Jackie Shroff and Anil Kapoor) to help him avenge his family's death by escaped terrorist Doctor Dang (played by Anupam Kher). This was also the first film which paired him opposite veteran actress Nutan.

1990s

        In 1991, he starred alongside fellow veteran actor Raaj Kumar in Saudagar, his third and last film with Subhash Ghai. This was his second film with Raaj Kumar after 1959'sPaigham. Saudagar was Kumar's last box office success and also his last film for several years. In 1993 he won the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award. He was attached to make his directorial debut with a film titled Kalinga but the film was eventually shelved.

In 1998 he made his last film appearance in Qila, where he played dual roles as an evil landowner who is murdered and his twin brother who tries to solve the mystery of his death.

2000s

      In 2001 he was set to appear in a film titled Asar - The Impact alongside Ajay Devgan which was shelved. His films Mughal-e-Azam and Naya Daur were fully colorized and re-released in 2004 and 2008 respectively.

Other career highlights

• Kumar was very choosy, and turned down lead roles in many films which eventually were released to great box office success, including Lawrence of Arabia, Pyaasa andSangam.

• Several of his films remain unreleased and unfinished such as Jaanwar, Shikwa and Aag Ka Dariya.

• During his career, Kumar was most often voiced by Mohammed Rafi. Others who provided his voice were Talat Mahmood, Mukesh (until 1958) and Kishore Kumar was chosen to playback the song "Saala Main To Saab Bangaya" for the film Sagina (1974).

Public life

      Dilip Kumar was nominated a member of Rajya Sabha, the upper house of Indian parliament for a term.

He was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994. In 1998 he was awarded the Nishan-e-Imtiaz, the highest civilian award conferred by the government of Pakistan. He is the second Indian to receive the award. At the time of the Kargil War, Shiv Senachief Bal Thackeray demanded Dilip Kumar return his Nishan-e-Imtiaz, citing "that country's blatant aggression on Indian soil."Dilip Kumar refused, saying:

"This award was given to me for the humane activities to which I have dedicated myself. I have worked for the poor, I have worked for many years to bridge the cultural and communal gaps between India and Pakistan. Politics and religion have created these boundaries. I have striven to bring the two people together in whatever way I could. Tell me, what does any of this have to do with the Kargil conflict?"

Dilip Kumar launched his Twitter account and his first tweet was on his 89th Birthday in 2011.

Personal life

       Dilip Kumar was first in love with the actress Kamini Kaushal, but they could not marry due to her being married to her deceased sister's husband. Subsequently, he was also in love with the actress Madhubala but they had to part ways as her family was opposed to their marriage. Vyjayanthimala, was Dilip Kumar's third love; they have denied any rumours of an affair. He married actress Saira Banu, who was 22 years younger than him, in 1966. He married a second time in 1980 to Asma but the marriage ended soon after. Dilip Kumar for first time in his life undertook a pilgrimage to Mecca in 2013 along with his wife Saira Bano 

Health

       Around 10 September 2011 it surfaced that the health of Dilip Kumar is worsening. Some tweets even mistakenly spread news of his death. Later Saira Banu made a public statement that the actor is in good health and in high spirits. On September 15, 2013, the 90 year old Dilip Kumar suffered a silent Heart attack and was subsequently admitted toLilavati Hospital in Mumbai. On September 16, a Hospital statement said that his condition was stable and he was put under observation in ICU for 48 hours due to his bypass status and advanced age. He had undergone heart surgery 14 years before. In December 2014, Dilip Kumar was hospitalized for pneumonia and admitted to Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai under ICU.

Awards and popularity

Dilip Kumar is widely considered as one of the greatest actors in the history of Hindi cinema. He holds the Guinness World Record for winning the maximum number of awards by an Indian actor. He has received many awards throughout his career, including 8 Filmfare Best Actor awards and 19 Filmfare nominations. He was honoured with the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 1993.

Dilip Kumar was appointed Sheriff of Mumbai (an honorary position) in 1980, the Government of India honoured Kumar with the Padma Bhushan in 1991, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2015. The Government of Andhra Pradesh honoured Kumar with NTR National Award in 1997. The Government of Pakistanconferred Kumar with Nishan-e-Imtiaz, the highest civilian award in Pakistan, in 1997. The ruling political party of Shiv Sena in Maharashtra had objected on this award and questioned Kumar's patriotism. However, in 1999 in consultation with the then Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Kumar retained the award. He was honored withCNN-IBN Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009.

Prem Nath

Prem Nath
Born	Premnath Malhotra 21 November 1926 Peshawar, North-West Frontier Province, British India
Died	3 November 1992 (aged 65) Mumbai, India
Occupation	Actor, Director
Years active	1947–1985
Spouse(s)	Bina Rai
Children	Prem Krishen Kailash Nath (Monty)
Relatives	Rajendra Nath (Brother) Narendra Nath (Brother) Krishna Kapoor (Sister) Uma Chopra (Sister) Raj Kapoor (Brother-in-law) Prem Chopra (Brother-in-law)

Premnath Malhotra (21 November 1926 – 3 November 1992) was an Indian actor.

Personal life

       He was born in Karimpura locality near Ghanta Ghar in Peshawar. His family moved to Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh after partition and he moved to Bombay where he was discovered as an actor.

He married actress Bina Rai. Their children are actor Prem Krishen and Kailash Nath (Monty). They are also the grandparents of actress Akanksha Malhotra and director Siddharth Malhotra who are Prem Krishen's children. Adiraj Malhotra and Arjun Malhotra are the sons of Kailash Nath. His sister Krishna married Raj Kapoor while his other sister was married to veteran Bollywood actor Prem Chopra. His brothers Rajendra Nath and Narendra Nath were also actors who mostly appeared in comic and supporting roles. He was also a close friend of the actress Asha Parekh. He died of a heart attack in 1992 at the age of 66.

Career

       Premnath made his film debut in Ajit (1948), opposite Monica Desai, and was one of the first colour films.He got major roles in Raj Kapoor's first directorial film Aag and Barsaat (1949) which was his first major success. Premnath went on to appear in many films for the next three decades, some of which were the biggest blockbusters in Indian film history. The films in which he played the leading role failed to do well but the films in which he played the central villain role or supporting role were some of the biggest blockbusters in Indian film history. Some his most notable films were Aan (1952), Teesri Manzil (1966), Johny Mera Naam (1970), Tere Mere Sapne(1971), Roti Kapada Aur Makaan (1974), Dharmatma (1975), Kalicharan (1976) and Desh Premee (1982). He also starred in the religious Punjabi film Sat Sri Akal (1977).

He fell in love with actress Bina Rai during the filming of Aurat. They married and formed a production company together called P.N. films. They pinned high hopes for their films, which didn't become hits, such as Shagufa, Prisoner of Golconda, Samunder andWatan. Thus, the Premnath - Bina Rai pair never clicked on the screen.

He earned Filmfare nominations as Best Supporting Actor for: Shor (1972), Bobby (1973), Amir Garib (1974), and Roti Kapda Aur Makaan (1974).

Apart from Bollywood films, he also appeared in an episode of the American television series Maya in 1967 and a 1969 American film titledKenner opposite former American football player turned actor Jim Brown. He starred in a number of Punjabi films such as Sat Sri Akal(1977). He also directed a film Samundar (1957) for his home production house P. N. films, which was its only production. His last film appearance was in Hum Dono (1985) after which he retired from acting. He died in 1992 of a heart attack at the age of sixty-five.

Selected filmography

Films

Year	Film	Character / Role	Notes
1990	Kishan Kanhaiya	Deulatram
1985	Hum Dono	Lata's Father
1982	Desh Premee	Puthu Anna
1981	Krodhi	Jagira
1980	Karz	Sir Judah
1980	Guest House	Christopher
1980	Dhan Daulat	Mangat
1979	Muqabla	Police Inspector
1979	Jaani Dushman	Pujari
1979	Lok Parlok	Yamraaj
1979	Gautam Govinda	Dharamdutt
1979	Dhongee	Mr. John Lord / Gurkha Bahadur
1978	Vishwanath	GNK
1978	Shalimar	Raja Bahadur Singh
1978	Heeralal Pannalal	Inspector Premlal
1977	Sat Sri Akal		Punjabi Film
1977	Shirdi Ke Sai Baba	Som Dev
1977	Jadu Tona
1977	Farishta Ya Qatil
1977	Darinda
1977	Chandi Sona	Lord Mayor Jojo
1977	Chala Murari Hero Banne
1976	Nagin	Sapera
1976	Kalicharan	IG P.N. Khanna
1976	Kabeela	Sardar Babbar
1976	Nehle pe Dehla
1976	Janeman	Ram Bharose
1976	Jai Bajrang Bali	Lankeshwar Shri Ravan
1976	Dus Numbri	Inspector Jaichan
1976	Aap Beati	Bajrang Bahadur
1975	Sanyasi	Mangal Singh
1975	Rani Aur Lalpari	Yamraj
1975	Dhoti Lota Aur Chowpatty	Imandar Pauwala
1975	Dharmatma	Dharamdas 'Dharmatma'
1975	Dharam Karam	Shankar Dada
1975	Dafaa 302
1974	Roti Kapda Aur Makaan	Harnam Singh	Nominated for 1974 Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor[3]
1974	Pran Jaye Par Vachan Na Jaye	Mangal Singh
1974	Ishq Ishq Ishq	Pahar
1974	Amir Garib	Daulatram	Nominated for 1974 Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor[3]
1973	Nafrat	CBI Inspector Kumar
1973	Loafer	Villain
1973	Chhupa Rustam	Williams
1973	Bobby	Jack Braganza	Nominated for 1973 Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor[3]
1972	Wafaa	Barrister
1972	Shor	Khan Badshah	Nominated for 1972 Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor[3]
1972	Rani Mera Naam
1972	Raja Jani	Diwan Gajendra Singh
1972	Mom Ki Gudiya	Vakil Uncle
1972	Be-Imaan	DIG Gopal Das
1971	Tere Mere Sapne	Seth Madhochand
1970	Pushpanjali	Peter D'Costa
1970	Johny Mera Naam	Ranjit/Rai Saab Bhupendra Singh
1971	Gora Aur Kala	Prithvi Singh
1969	Kenner		American film[4]
1967	Baharon Ke Sapne	Mr. Kapoor
1966	Teesri Manzil	Kunwer
1966	Pyar Mohabbat	Senapati Uday Kumar Singh
1966	Amrapali	Magadh Senpati Veer
1965	Sikandar-e-Azam	Chirag
1963	Rustam Sohrab	Rustam Sohrab
1963	Shaheed Bhagat Singh
1960	Apna Ghar
1957	Samundar
1953	Aurat	Adil
1952	Saaki
1952	Aan	Shamsher Singh
1951	Badal	Badal
1951	Naujawan	Raju
1951	Awaara		Cameo Appearance
1951	Sagai	Prem
1950	Hindustan Hamara
1949	Barsaat	Gopal
1948	Ajit
1948	Aag	Rajan
1947	Daulat Ke Liye

Dev Anand

Dev Anand
Felicitation of Dev Anand by the Indo-American Society
Born	Dharam Devdutt Pishorimal Anand 26 September 1923 Shakargarh, Punjab, British India, now in Punjab, Pakistan
Died	3 December 2011 (aged 88) London, England
Residence	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Nationality	Indian
Other names	Dev Sahaab
Occupation	Actor, producer, director, co-founder Navketan Films (1949)
Years active	1946–2011
Spouse(s)	Kalpana Kartik (1954–2011 his death)
Children	Suneil Anand Devina Anand
Signature

Early life

           Dev was born Dharam Dev Pishorimal Anand on 26 September 1923 in the Shakargarh tehsil of the Gurdaspur district in Punjab (British India) (present-day Narowal district of Pakistan). His father Pishori Lal Anand was a well-to-do advocate. Dev was the third of four sons born to Pishori Lal Anand. One of Dev's younger sister is Sheela Kanta Kapur, who is mother of Shekhar Kapur. His older brothers were Manmohan Anand (Advocate, Gurdaspur Dist. Court) and Chetan Anand and younger one was Vijay Anand. Dev Anand spent his early years in Gharota village near Gurdaspur, Gurdaspur town. He did his schooling till matriculation from Sacred Heart School, Dalhousie, Himachal Pradesh (then in Punjab) and went to college Dharamsala in Himachal Pradesh before going to Lahore to study. Later Dev completed BA degree in English Literature from the Government College, Lahore in British India.

Career

         After completing BA degree in English Literature from the Government College, Lahore (then in British India, now in Pakistan),Dev Anand left his hometown for Bombay in the early 1940s. He began his career in the military censor's office at Churchgate, for a monthly salary of Rs. 165. Later he joined as a clerk in an accountancy firm for a salary of Rs. 85. He joined his older brother, Chetan, as a member of the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA).Dev Anand aspired to become a performer after seeing Ashok Kumar's performance in films like Achhut Kanya and Kismat. Dev Anand quoted in an interview that "I remember when I gatecrashed into the office of the man who gave me the first break, he kept looking at me – Babu Rao Pai of Prabhat Film Studios. At that time he made up his mind that this boy deserves a break and later mentioned to his people that ‘this boy struck me because of his smile and beautiful eyes and his tremendous confidence." Then he was soon offered the lead role in Prabhat Films' Hum Ek Hain (1946), a film about Hindu-Muslim unity, where Dev Anand played a Hindu boy and was paired opposite Kamala Kotnis. While shooting the film in Pune, Anand befriended the actor Guru Dutt. Between them, they agreed that if one of them was to become successful in the film industry, they would help the other to be successful. They formed a mutual understanding that when Anand produced a film, Dutt would direct it and when Dutt directed a film, Anand would act in it.

Late 40s and romance with Suraiya

        In the late 1940s, Anand was offered a few roles starring as the male lead opposite singer-actress Suraiya in woman-oriented films. He considered himself to be very lucky to get a chance to star opposite such an established actress and accepted the offers. While shooting these films, he became romantically involved with Suraiya. The two of them were paired in seven films together: Vidya (1948), Jeet (1949), Shair (1949), Afsar (1950), Nili (1950), Do Sitare (1951) and Sanam (1951), all of which were successful at the box office. In these films, Suraiya was always first-biller in the credits, indicating that she was a bigger star than Anand. She fell in love with him during the shooting of the song Kinare kinare chale jayen ge from the film Vidya—while shooting the scene, the boat they were in capsized, and Anand saved Suraiya from drowning. Their entire affair was conducted in a clandestine manner, with friends like Durga Khote and Kamini Kaushal going out of their way to engineer secret rendezvous. On the sets of the film Jeet, Anand finally proposed to Suraiya and gave her a diamond ring worth Rs 3,000. Her maternal grandmother opposed the relationship as they were Muslim and Anand was Hindu, and so, Suraiya remained unmarried. They stopped acting together after her grandmother opposed their partnership, and Do Sitare was the last film in which they appeared. Although the films he starred in with Suraiya had been successful, the producers and directors of those films attributed their success to the acting prowess and screen presence of Suraiya. Anand began looking for an opportunity to play the main male lead in a film where his acting skills could be demonstrated, so as to dispel scepticism about his acting abilities.

Break and the 1950s

          Anand was offered his first big break by Ashok Kumar. He spotted Anand hanging around in the studios and picked him as the hero for the Bombay Talkies production, Ziddi(1948), co-starring Kamini Kaushal, which became an instant success. After Ziddi's success, Anand decided that he would start producing films. It was in the film Ziddi, where the first-ever Kishore-Lata duet, Yeh Kaun Aaya Karke Yeh Sola Singhar, was recorded. This duet was an instant hit, and from here, on both the playback singers' association with Dev Anand began. It continued for next four decades. His association with Kishore Kumar started when the former sang the first solo of his playback singing career – Marne Ki Duayen – picturised on Dev Anand in the movie Ziddi. Dev had forged a very strong bond of friendship with Kishore Kumar during the making of the film. In 1949, he launched his own company Navketan Films (which means "newness"), which, as of 2011, had produced 35 films.

Dev chose Guru Dutt as director for the crime thriller, Baazi (1951). The film, starring Dev Anand, Geeta Bali and Kalpana Kartik was a trendsetter, regarded as the forerunner of the spate of urban crime films that followed in Bollywood in the 1950s. The film Baazi saw debut of Kalpana Kartik (aka Mona Singh) as the lead female actress and Guru Dutt as a director. The collaboration was a success at the box office and the duo of Dev Anand and Kalpana Kartik were offered many films to star in together. They signed all the film offers and subsequently the movies Aandhiyan (1952), Taxi Driver, House No. 44 and Nau Do Gyarah went on to become big hits too. During the making of film Taxi Driver, the couple fell in love and Dev proposed marriage to his heroine Kalpana. In 1954, Taxi Driver was declared a hit and the two decided to marry in a quiet ceremony. The couple had a son,Suneil Anand in 1956 and later a daughter, Devina, was born. After her marriage, Kalpana decided not to pursue her acting career further. Nau Do Gyarah was the couple's last movie together.

A rapid-fire style of dialogue delivery and a penchant for nodding while speaking became Dev's style in films like House No. 44, Pocket Maar, Munimji, Funtoosh, C.I.D. andPaying Guest. In the 1950s his films were of the mystery genre or light comedy love stories or were films with social relevance like Ek ke baad ek and Funtoosh.His style was lapped up by the audience and was widely imitated. He starred in a string of box office successes for the remainder of the 1950s opposite newcomer Waheeda Rehman in C.I.D.,Solva Saal, Kala Pani, Kala Bazar and Baat Ek Raat Ki. Waheeda first became a star with C.I.D becoming a hit. In 1955 he also co-starred with Dilip Kumar in Insaniyat. With his acting in Kala Pani (1958), as the son who is willing to go to any lengths to clear his framed father's name, he won his first Filmfare award for Best Actor for the film. He attempted films of tragic genre occasionally like Pocket Maar (1956), Kala Pani (1958), Bombai Ka Baboo (1960) and Sharabi (1964) and tasted success with them. Dev also played a few characters with a negative shade, like in Jaal(1952) where he played a smuggler, then as an absconding gang member in Dushman, as a black marketer in Kala Bazar. Apart from his pair with Suraiya and Kalpana Kartik, his pair with Nutan and Waheeda Rehman was popular among the audiences in late 50’s and 60’s. His films Rahiand Aandhiyaan, were screened along with Raj Kapoor's Awaara. From the early fifties till mid sixties, the trio of Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand ruled the roost.

Romantic hero image in the 60s

       In the sixties, Dev Anand acquired a romantic image with films like Manzil and Tere Ghar Ke Samne with Nutan, Kinaare Kinaare with Meena Kumari, Maya with Mala Sinha, Asli-Naqli with Sadhana Shivdasani, Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hai and Mahal with Asha Parekh and Teen Deviyaan opposite three heroines Kalpana, Simi Garewal and Nanda. In the filmTeen Deviyaan, Dev Anand played a playboy.

His first colour film, Guide with Waheeda Rehman was based on the novel of the same name by R. K. Narayan. Dev Anand himself was the impetus for making the film version of the book. He met and persuaded Narayan to give his assent to the project. Dev Anand tapped his friends in Hollywood to launch an Indo-US co-production that was shot in Hindi and English simultaneously and was released in 1965. Guide, directed by younger brother Vijay Anand, was an acclaimed movie. Dev played Raju, a voluble guide, who supports Rosy (Waheeda) in her bid for freedom. He is not above thoughtlessly exploiting her for personal gains. Combining style with substance, he gave an affecting performance as a man grappling with his emotions in his passage through love, shame and salvation.

He reunited with Vijay Anand for the movie Jewel Thief, based on thriller genre which featured Vyjayanthimala, Tanuja, Anju Mahendru, Faryal and Helen and was very successful. Their next collaboration, Johny Mera Naam (1970), again a thriller, where Dev was paired opposite Hema Malini was a big hit. It was Johnny Mera Naam which made Hema Malini a big star.

In 1969 he was a member of the jury at the 6th Moscow International Film Festival.

Directorial debut and the 70s

       His directorial debut, the espionage drama Prem Pujari, was a flop but has developed a cult following over the years.The film introduced Zaheeda and had Waheeda Rahman as the lead female artiste. He tasted success with his 1971 directorial effort, Hare Rama Hare Krishna which talked about the prevalent hippie culture. His find Zeenat Aman, who played the mini-skirt sporting, pot-smoking Janice, became an overnight sensation. Dev also became known as a filmmaker of trenchantly topical themes. This same year, he starred with Mumtaz in Tere Mere Sapne, an adaptation of A. J. Cronin's novel, The Citadel. The film was directed by Dev's brother, Vijay and was also successful. In 1971 he paired again with Zaheeda in Gambler which went on to become a success.

In the 1970s, Raj Kapoor started playing roles of father in films like Kal Aaj Aur Kal in 1971 and Dharam Karam in 1974 and had put lot of weight and films with Dilip Kumar as lead hero were failures at the box office . Some of the hurriedly-made films with Dev Anand as the leading man—three each opposite Hema Malini and Zeenat Aman and Yeh Gulistaan Hamara with Sharmila Tagore became flops and posed a threat to his career as leading man. But he delivered commercial hits again with young heroines Yogeeta Bali andRaakhee in Banarasi Babu (1973), Hema Malini in Chhupa Rustam (1973) and Amir Garib (1974), Zeenat Aman in Heera Panna(1973), Warrant(1975) and Darling Darling(1977) and Parveen Babi in Bullet(1976). The presence of his discoveries in the 1970s—Zeenat, and later Tina Munim, in films and his good onscreen chemistry with beautiful young stars like Raakhee, Parveen Babi, Hema Malini, Zeenat Aman in various films boosted Dev's image as the evergreen star even though he was well into his fifties.

Political activism during the Emergency in the late 70s

Devnd has also been politically active. He led a group of film personalities who stood up against the Internal Emergency imposed by the then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi. He actively campaigned against her with his supporters in Indian parliamentary elections in 1977. He also formed a party called the "National Party of India", which he later disbanded.

The 1978 hit Des Pardes, directed by Dev Anand was the debut movie of actress Tina Munim and this film’s success gave him the tag of evergreen hero. He was 55 but he shared very good chemistry with the 20-year old Tina Munim. Dev Anand was offered lead role in Man Pasand by director Basu Chatterjee. Dev Anand’s successful run at the box office continued in the 1980s with Man Pasand, Lootmaar (both opposite Tina Munim), Swami Dada (1982) being both critically acclaimed and box office hits.

Later career

Though Dev Anand’s demand as the lead hero had not decreased even in the 1980s, he decided that it was the right time to introduce his son Suneil Anand in films as the hero. He launched his son in the Kramer vs. Kramer inspired Anand Aur Anand (1984), which was produced and directed by Dev Anand himself and had music by R.D. Burman. He expected the film to do well but the film was a box office disaster and Suneil Anand decided not to act in films any more.

But films with Dev Anand as the lead hero Hum Naujawan (1985), Lashkar (1989) continued to be box office success and was appreciated by critics. Awwal Number (1990), where Dev Anand co-starred with Aamir Khan became an average grosser. Aamir said in an interview that Awwal Number is the only film he signed without reading the script because it was being directed by his senior Dev Anand. Aamir quoted “Dev saab was an icon for many generations and entertained us throughout his life. He was already 60 years old in 1983 when he acted with Padmini Kolhapure in Swami Dada but looked half his age and shared a good on screen chemistry. In 1989, his directorial venture Sachche ka Bolbala was released. Though critically acclaimed, it was a commercial failure.

His directorial movie "Gangster" (1995) had a controversial nude rape scene of an unknown actress, even then the movie was released uncut.

Since the 1990s except for Awwal Number, rest of the eight films directed by him were box office failures. But Sau Crore (1991) and Censor (2000) were critically acclaimed. His last film Chargesheet (2011) was panned by critics across the board. The only two hero film he acted in were Insaniyat in 1955 with Dilip Kumar and Return of Jewel Thief with Dharmendra in 1996. He also starred in English films like The Evil Within(1970) where he was paired opposite Vietnamese actress Kieu Chinh and Zeenat Aman and Guide(English Version). Of the 114 Hindi films he appeared in 6 decades, Kahin Aur Chal (1968) had a delayed release in early 1970s and multistarrer film Ek Do Teen Chaar (1980) remained unreleased and Shrimanji (1968) had him in guest appearance and 82 were box office hits and 29 were commercial failures. By 2011, he held the record for being the second actor from Hindi films who has played the central solo lead character in maximum films—104, with first being Rajesh Khanna who played author backed solo lead hero in maximum films 106.

Comparisons with Gregory Peck

Often compared to the famous actor Gregory Peck the world over, Dev Anand said that he didn't feel ecstatic bearing the tag line bestowed on him in his hey days. "When you are at an impressionable age you make idols. But when you grow out of the phase, you develop your own persona. I don't want to be known as India's Gregory Peck, I am Dev Anand".

Acquainted to the Bollywood actor, Peck's personal interactions with him spanned four to five long meetings in Europe and Mumbai.

Dev Anand and Suraiya met Peck for the first time at Mumbai's Willingdon Club, after the Filmfare Awards in 1954, on Peck's stopover in the city from a schedule at Sri Lanka after shooting for Purple Plane. He knew of the 'Indian Star' as an actor, more so probably because of his romance with Suraiya was grabbing the headlines, and they had a chat. The second time they met in Rome when Dev Anand was on his way back from the Venice Film Festival, he visited him on the sets of Roman Holiday. "I was returning from the Venice film fest. I stopped my car and joined the crowd watching the shoot, hoping that his eyes would fall on me. As expected, he nodded and I walked up to him. He remembered me and we exchanged pleasantries." The third meeting was at London on the sets of Moby Dick. However, Suraiya asked for an exclusive meeting with her idol at her house. Though Anand says jealousy was natural for anyone in love, he didn't mind that he was not invited. "I didn't quite feel anything. It wasn't as if they were going to fall in love or make love. Even if they would have, it wouldn't have mattered. I was mature enough. Moreover, he wasn't my rival. I too was a big star by then," says Anand.

Critical appraisal

Dev Anand has directed 19 films and produced 35 films of which 7 directorial ventures and 18 films respectively were commercially successful at the box office. He wrote the story for 13 of his films. Critics say his directorial ventures have always been ahead of its time. Dev Anand's films are well known for their hit songs. He is known to have been an active participant in the music sessions of a number of his films. His association with music composers Shankar-Jaikishen, O. P. Nayyar, Kalyanji-Anandji, Sachin Dev Burman and his sonRahul Dev Burman, lyricists Hasrat Jaipuri, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Neeraj, Shailendra, Anand Bakshi, and playback singers Mohammed Rafi, Hemant Kumar and Kishore Kumarproduced some very popular songs. S.D Burman, R.D Burman, Rafi, Pran and Kishore Kumar were his closest friends from film industry.^[31][32]

In September 2007, Dev's own autobiography Romancing with Life was released at a birthday party with the Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh. In February 2011, his 1961 black and white film Hum Dono was digitised and colourised and released.

Dev Anand is credited with giving actors like Zarina Wahab in Ishq Ishq Ishq, Jackie Shroff in Swami Dada, Tabu in Hum Naujawan and Richa Sharma(Sanjay Dutt’s first wife) a break into the film industry, discovered Zeenat Amaan, Tina Munim and encouraging music composer Rajesh Roshan.^[7] Amit Khanna started his career with Navketan as executive producer in 1971 and had been secretary to Dev Anand in 70's. He adds, "The uniqueness of Navketan today is that it's the only film company in the world still run by the one who started it." Shatrughan Sinha disclosed in an interview that it was Dev Anand who gave him a break in films by giving a role in 'Prem Pujari' and since Dev had given Sinha a very small role in that film, he compensated for it by giving Sinha another role in his next film 'Gambler'. Sinha quoted "Later on we worked together in 'Sharif Badmash' and it was really a privilege to work with him,". It was under Dev Anand's Navketan Banner where Guru Dutt, Raj Khosla, Waheeda Rahman, S.D. Burman, Jaidev, Sahir Ludhianvi, Majrooh Sultanpuri, Yash Johar, Shekhar Kapur, Kabir Bedi were given breaks into Hindi films and Dev launched actors Zaheera, Zaheeda Hussain, Zarina Wahab, Natasha Sinha, Ekta Sohini, Sabrina.

Death

       Dev Anand died in his room at The Washington Mayfair Hotel in London at the age of 88 on 3 December 2011 (4 December 2011 by Indian Standard Time) of a cardiac arrest. His death came just months after the release of his last film, Chargesheet. Anand was reportedly in London for a medical check up at the time of his death. Condolences poured in from all corners of the Indian film industry, with most of them remembering his positive attitude towards life.^[39][41] On 10 December, his funeral service was held at a small chapel in London after which his casket was taken to the Putney Vale Crematorium in South West London for cremation. His ashes were returned to India for immersion burial in the Godavari River.

Shammi Kapoor

Shammi Kapoor
Born	Shamsher Raj Kapoor 21 October 1931 Bombay, Bombay Presidency,British India (now Mumbai, Maharashtra, India)
Died	14 August 2011 (aged 79) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India[1]
Nationality	Indian
Other names	Elvis Presley of India
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1948–2011
Spouse(s)	Geeta Bali (m. 1955–1965; her death) Neela Devi Gohil (m. 1969–2011; his death)
Children	Aditya Raj Kapoor Kanchan Desai
Parent(s)	Prithviraj Kapoor Ramsarni Kapoor
Relatives	Raj Kapoor (Brother) Shashi Kapoor (Brother) Urmila Kapoor (Sister) See Kapoor Family

Shammi Kapoor (born Shamsher Raj Kapoor; 21 October 1931^[2] – 14 August 2011) was an Indian film actor and director. He was a prominent lead actor in Hindi cinema from the late 1950s until the early 1970s. He received the Filmfare Best Actor Award in 1968 for his performance in Brahmachari and Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for Vidhaata in 1982.

Shammi Kapoor is hailed as one of the most entertaining lead actors that Hindi cinema has ever produced. He was one of the leading stars of Hindi cinema during the late 1950s, the 1960s and early '70s. He made his Hindi Film debut in 1953 with the filmJeevan Jyoti, and went on to deliver hits like Tumsa Nahin Dekha, Dil Deke Dekho, Singapore, Junglee, College Girl, Professor,China Town, Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya, Kashmir Ki Kali, Janwar, Teesri Manzil, An Evening in Paris, Bramhachari, Andaz andSachaai.

Early life

He was given the name Shamsher Raj Kapoor at his birth in Bombay (now Mumbai) to film and theatre actor Prithviraj Kapoor and Ramsharni Kapoor (née Mehra).Shammi was the second of the three sons born to Prithviraj (the other two being Raj Kapoor andShashi Kapoor, both successful Hindi Film actors).

Though born in Mumbai, he spent a major portion of his childhood in Peshewar in the Kapoor Haveli and in Calcutta (now Kolkata), where his father was involved with New Theatres Studios, acting in films. It was in Kolkata that he did his Montessory and Kindergarten. After coming back to Bombay, he first went to St. Joseph's Convent (Wadala) and then, to Don Bosco School. He finished his matric schooling from New Era School at Hughes Road.

Kapoor had a short stint at Ramnarain Ruia College after which he joined his father’s theatrical company Prithvi Theatres. He entered the cinema world in 1948, as a junior artiste, at a salary of Rs. 50 per month, stayed with Prithvi Theatres for the next four years and collected his last pay check of Rs. 300, in 1952. He made his debut in Hindi Films in the year 1953, when the film Jeevan Jyoti was released. It was directed by Mahesh Kaul and Chand Usmani was Kapoor’s first heroine. He was in relationship with Nadia Gamal, belly dancer from Cairo and Egyptian actress, from 1953-55 after they met in Sri Lanka on an occasion while he was on holiday trip, but their relationship ended when she moved back to Cairo.

Film career

        Kapoor started out with serious roles but with Filmistan's Nasir Hussain directed Tumsa Nahin Dekha (1957) opposite Ameeta and Dil Deke Dekho (1959) with Asha Parekh, he attained the image of a light-hearted, and stylish playboy.

With Junglee (1961) his new image was cemented and his subsequent films were all in this genre. Mohammed Rafi was frequently chosen as his playback voice. In his early career in the 1950s, he acted with established heroines playing second fiddle in woman-oriented movies: with Madhubala in films such as Rail Ka Dibba (1953) andNaqab, with Nutan in Laila Majnu, with Shyama in Thokar and with Nalini Jaywant in Hum Sab Chor Hain. From 1953 to 1957, none of his films made him popular, until Tumsa Nahin Dekha. His career's first breakthrough came with Tumsa Nahi Dekha in 1957. In the 1960s, however, he was often paired with new heroines such as Asha Parekh, Saira Banu, and Sharmila Tagore, all of whom had very successful careers. Of all his heroines, he said that Sharmila Tagore, Rajshree, and Asha Parekh were easy to work with.

Sharmila Tagore and Saira Banu made their Hindi film debuts with Shammi Kapoor in Kashmir Ki Kali and Junglee respectively^[8] He and Asha Parekh were paired in four films, of which the murder mystery Teesri Manzil (1966) and Dil Deke Dekho were successful.

In the early 1950s Kapoor accepted serious roles in films such as Shama Parwana (1954) with Suraiya, comedy flick Mem Sahib (1956) with Meena Kumari, and thrillers like Chor Bazar (1954), as well as in the tragic love story Mirza Sahiban (1957) opposite Shyama. He gained more widespread popularity with the successful films Tumsa Nahi Dekha(1957), Ujala and Dil Dil Deke Deko (both 1959). In the first half of the 1960s, Kapoor was seen in successful films like College Girl, Basant, Singapore, Boy Friend, Professor, Dil Tera Diwana, Vallah Kya Baat Hai, Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya, China Town, Kashmir Ki Kali, Bluff Master, Janwar and Rajkumar.

In 1968, he received the first Filmfare Best Actor Award of his career for Bramhachari. He made a unique place for himself in the industry as he was the only dancing hero in Hindi films from the late 1950s till the early '70s. He used to compose dancing steps in the songs picturised on him and reportedly never needed a choreographer. This earned him the name of Elvis Presley of India.

His pairing opposite Southern heroines tended to be commercially successful. He played opposite B. Saroja Devi in Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya and Preet Na Jane Reet, withPadmini in Singapore, and opposite Vyjayanthimala in College Girl and Prince. In the late 1960s, his successful films included Budtameez and Sachaai with Sadhana, Latt Saheb with Nutan and Tumse Achha Kaun Hai with Babita.

In the 1970s, Kapoor’s weight problem proved an obstacle when playing the romantic hero, and the last such film he played in was Andaz (1971). He would move to character roles and acted in films like Zameer, Hero, Vidhaata, Hukumat, Batwara, Tahalka, Chamatkar, Namak and Prem Granth. In 1974, he directed Manoranjan and in 1976 Bundal Baaz.

Shammi turned into a successful supporting actor in the 1970s, playing Saira Banu's father in Zameer (1974), when he had been her leading man a decade earlier in Junglee(1961) and Bluff Master (1964) and playing Amitabh Bachchan's foster father in Parvarish. He also directed Manoranjan (1974), a movie inspired from Irma La Douce and in which he played a supporting role and Bundal Baaz (1976) starring Rajesh Khanna. Neither were successful commercially though they got critical acclaim and were hailed as classics and ahead of their time. In the 1980s and 1990s, he continued to play many supporting roles and won a Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for his performance inVidhaata (1982). He got the opportunity to do some films in other languages such as Bengali and Tamil in the nineties.

He did a social melodrama serial called Chattan aired on Zee TV for more than a year in the 1990s. He eventually cut down on film appearances by the late 1990s and early 2000s with appearances in the 1999 Salman Khan and Urmila Matondkar starrer Jaanam Samjha Karo, 2002 release Waah! Tera Kya Kehna and the delayed 2006 releaseSandwich (his last appearance as a character actor). He made his last appearance in Imtiaz Ali's directorial venture Rockstar co-starring his grand-nephew Ranbir Kapoor, the grandson of his brother Raj Kapoor.

Director Shakti Samanta directed Shammi Kapoor in six films — Singapore, China Town, Kashmir Ki Kali, An Evening In Paris, Pagla Kahin Ka and Jaane Anjane (the last two were unsuccessful) — and said in an interview “I found Shammi to be a thoroughly good man. Even in his heydays, he was humble.

Personal life

      Kapoor met Geeta Bali in 1955, during the shooting of the film Rangeen Raaten, where he was the leading actor and she played a cameo. Four months later, they married at Banganga Temples, near Napean Sea Road of Mumbai. They had a son, Aditya Raj Kapoor, on 1 July 1956, at Shirodkar's Hospital, Mumbai, a year after they were married. Five years later, in 1961, they had a daughter, Kanchan. Geeta Bali passed away from smallpox in 1965. Shammi Kapoor married Neila Devi on January 27, 1969.

Shammi Kapoor was the founder and chairman of Internet Users Community of India (IUCI). He had also played a major role in setting up internet organizations like the Ethical Hackers Association. Kapoor also maintained a website dedicated to the Kapoor family.

Death

Kapoor was admitted to Breach Candy Hospital, Mumbai on 7 August 2011 suffering from chronic renal failure. His condition remained serious for next few days and he was kept on ventilator support. He died on 14 August 2011, 05:15 am IST, of chronic renal failure, aged 79. Funeral was held on Monday, 15 August at Banganga cremation ground, Malabar Hill, Mumbai. His son, Aditya, performed the last rites at the cremation. The entire Kapoor family were present to pay their last respects, including his younger brother Shashi Kapoor, sister-in-law Krishna Kapoor, grand nephew Ranbir Kapoor, nephews Rishi, Randhir and Rajiv, Randhir's wife Babita and grand nieces Karishma Kapoorand Kareena Kapoor. Bollywood personalities Vinod Khanna, Shatrughan Sinha, Subhash Ghai, Amitabh Bachchan, Ramesh Sippy, Danny Denzongpa, Prem Chopra, Anil Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Govinda, Aamir Khan, Rani Mukherjee, Sharukh Khan, Kabir Bedi and Priyanka Chopra were among those who attended the funeral.

To honour Kapoor, a brass statue of his was unveiled at Walk of the Stars at Bandra Bandstand in Mumbai.

Shashi Kapoor

Shashi Kapoor
Born	Balbir Raj Prithviraj Kapoor 18 March 1938 (age 77)[1] Calcutta, Bengal Presidency,British India (now Kolkata, West Bengal,India)
Residence	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Other names	Balbir Shashi Balbir Raj Shasha (used by his brother,Shammi Kapoor) Shashi Baba
Occupation	Actor, Director, Producer
Years active	1941–1999 (retired)
Spouse(s)	Jennifer Kendal (1958–1984; her death)
Children	Kunal Kapoor (actor) Karan Kapoor Sanjana Kapoor
Parent(s)	Prithviraj Kapoor (Father) Ramsarni Kapoor (Mother)
Relatives	Raj Kapoor (Brother) Shammi Kapoor (Brother) See Kapoor Family

Career

Child artist

         Kapoor was born in Calcutta (now Kolkata) during British Raj. He is the younger brother of Raj Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor, the son of Prithviraj Kapoor, the widower of Jennifer Kendal, and the father of Karan Kapoor, Kunal Kapoor, and Sanjana Kapoor. From the age of four, Shashi Kapoor acted in plays directed and produced by his father Prithviraj Kapoor, while travelling with Prithvi Theatres. He started acting in films as a child in the late 1940s, appearing in commercial films including Sangram (1950), Dana Paani (1953) under the name of Shashiraj as there was another actor by the same name who used to act in mythological films as child artiste. His best known performances as child artist were in Aag (1948) and Awaara (1951), where he played the younger version of the characters played by his older brother Raj Kapoor and in Sangram (1950), where he played younger version of Ashok Kumar. He worked in four Hindi films as a child artist from 1948 to 1954.

Early career (1960s)

        Kapoor got an opportunity to work as an assistant director in the film Post Box 999, the debut film of Sunil Dutt, and worked as an assistant director to Ravindra Dave in Guest House (1959) which was followed by movies such as Dulha Dulhan, Shriman Satyawadi, where Raj Kapoor was the lead hero.

Shashi Kapoor made his debut as a leading man in the 1961 film Dharmputra and went on to appear in 116 Hindi films, including 61 films as the solo lead hero and 55 multi star-cast films, 21 films as supporting actor and special appearance in 7 films. He was a very popular actor in Bollywood during the 60s, 70s and until the mid 80s. Kapoor's early films, Dharmputra, Prem Patra, and Char Diwari, were in Hindi. He started acting in English language films in 1963, in films including The Householder and Shakespeare-Wallah. He was one of India's first actors to go international. Actress Nanda, who was an established star at this time, signed 8 Hindi films with Kapoor, as she believed that he could deliver good performances. Their first two films as a pair were the critically acclaimed romantic film Char Diwari (1961) and Mehndi Lagi Mere Haath(1962). In the 1960s Kapoor acted in several romantic films opposite Nanda, including Mohabbat Isko Kahete Hain (1965), Jab Jab Phool Khile (1965), Neend Hamari Khwab Tumhare (1966), Raja Saab (1969) and Rootha Na Karo (1970). In an interview in the 1990s, Kapoor declared that Nanda was his favourite heroine and that he regarded her as one of his mentors. In another interview, Nanda stated that Shashi Kapoor was her favourite hero.

1970s and 1980s

         Shashi Kapoor formed on screen pairs with Raakhee, Sharmila Tagore, Zeenat Aman from the late sixties to the mid eighties. He also acted opposite actresses Hema Malini,Parveen Babi, and Moushumi Chatterjee in many films. After their first movie together Sharmelee, became a blockbuster, Raakhee was frequently paired with him, and they acted in films such as Jaanwar Aur Insaan(1972), Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Baseraa (1981), Pighalta Aasman (1985), the critically acclaimed Trishna (1978), Doosara Aadmi (1977),Bandhan Kuchchey Daghon Ka, Bandh Honth (1984), and Zameen Aasman.^[9] He starred with Sharmila Tagore in Waqt (1965), Aamne Samne (1967), Suhana Safar (1970),Patanga (1971), Aa Gale Lag Jaa (1973), Vachan (1974), ^[10] Paap Aur Punya (1974), Swati (1986), the critically acclaimed New Delhi Times (1985), which fetched Kapoor a National Film Award for Best Actor in 1986,^[11] My Love (1970), Anari (1975), Gehri Chot (1983), Maa Beti (1986) and Ghar Bazar (1998). With Zeenat Aman, he worked in films like Chori Mera Kaam (1975), Deewaangee (1976), Roti Kapda Aur Makan, Heeralal Pannalal (1978), Pakhandi (1984), Bhavani Junction (1985), Satyam Shivam Sundaram,Krodhi (1981), Vakil Babu (1982), and Bandhan Kuchchey Dhaagon Ka (1983). He did 10 films opposite Hema Malini.

Kapoor's other movies include Haseena Maan Jayegi (1968) and Ek Shriman Ek Shrimati (1969) both with Babita, Kanyadan, Pyar Ka Mausam (1969) both opposite Asha Parekh, Chor Machaye Shor opposite Mumtaz, Abhinetri (1970), Aap Beati (1976), Maan Gaye Ustaad (1981), with Hema Malini, Bezubaan with Reena Roy, Chakkar Pe Chakkar (1976), Kali Ghata, Kalyug (1981), Vijeta (1982), Pyaar Ki Jeet(1987) all with Rekha and Bepanaah (1985) with Rati Agnihotri. Other films include multi-starrers like Dil Ne Pukara (1967), Trishul (1978), Neeyat (1980), Aandhi Toofan (1985), Naina (1973), Phaansi (1978), Salaakhen(1975), Fakira (1976), and Junoon (1978).^[12] He also worked with Rajesh Khanna in Prem Kahani.

From the 1970s to early 1980s, Kapoor starred alongside Pran in 9 films which include Biradari, Chori Mera Kaam, Phaansi, Shankar Dada, Chakkar Pe Chakkar, Rahu Ketu andMaan Gaye Ustaad. He made a popular pairing with Amitabh Bachchan and the two co-starred in a total of 12 films: Roti Kapda Aur Makaan (1974), Deewaar (1975), Kabhi Kabhie (1976), Immaan Dharam (1977), Trishul (1978), Kaala Patthar (1979), Suhaag (1979), Do Aur Do Paanch (1980), Shaan (1980), Silsila (1981), Namak Halaal (1982), andAkayla (1991). Shashi Kapoor was regularly cast with Sanjeev Kumar also in films like Mukti (1977), Trishul, Muqaddar (1978), Swayamvar(1980), Sawaal (1982), andPakhandi (1984).

He was also known internationally for starring in many British and American films, notably Merchant Ivory productions run by Ismail Merchant and James Ivory, such as The Householder (1963), Shakespeare Wallah (1965) (opposite his sister-in-law Felicity Kendal), Bombay Talkie (1970) and Heat and Dust (1982) in which he co-starred with his wifeJennifer Kendal, The Deceivers (1988) and Side Streets (1998). He also starred in other British and American films such as Pretty Polly (also called "A Matter Of Innocence" (1967)) opposite Hayley Mills, Siddhartha (1972), Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987), and Muhafiz (1994). James Ivory directed Kapoor in the first Merchant Ivory production The Householder, then in Shakespeare-Wallah, Bombay Talkie and Heat and Dust while Ismail Merchant directed him in Muhafiz (1994). He was the first Indian actor to work extensively in Hollywood films and British films.^{[citation needed]}

In 1978, he set up his production house, Film Valas, which produced critically acclaimed films such as Junoon (1978), Kalyug (1981), 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981), Vijeta (1982) and Utsav (1984). In 1991 he produced and directed a fantasy film titled Ajooba which had his frequent co-star Amitabh Bachchan and nephew Rishi Kapoor in the lead.

He regarded Nanda, Pran, Dharmendra, Dev Anand, Ismail Merchant, Rajesh Khanna, Sanjeev Kumar as his closest friends from the industry since the beginning of his career and maintained cordial relations with Amitabh Bachchan, Yash Chopra, MGR, Kishore Kumar, Mohammed Rafi, Lata Mangeshkar and most of his co-stars.

Later career (1987–1999)

     He accepted very few roles as a character actor in films since 1987. He acted with Pierce Brosnan in The Deceivers (1988). He also won a National (special jury) Award for his performance in Muhafiz (In Custody) (1994), and played the Rajah in the TV adaptation of Gulliver's Travels (1996). His last and most recent film appearances were in Jinnah(1998), a biographical film of Mohammed Ali Jinnah in which he was the narrator and another Merchant Ivory production titled Side Streets (1998). He retired from the film industry by late 1990s and had not appeared in any film ever since. He was seen in the limelight at the Shashi Kapoor Film Festival held in Muscat, Oman (September 2007). At the 55th Annual Filmfare Awards, Shashi Kapoor received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award.[1]

Personal life

       Kapoor attended Don Bosco High School in Matunga, Mumbai. He met English actress Jennifer Kendal in Calcutta in 1956 while both were working for their respective theatre groups. Kapoor was both assistant stage manager as well as an actor for his father’s theatre group, Prithvi. Geoffrey Kendal’s Shakespearean group was also present at the same time in Calcutta and Jennifer was Geoffrey’s daughter. After their subsequent meeting, the couple fell in love and after facing initial opposition from the Kendals and support from sister-in-law Geeta Bali, they got married in July 1958. They acted in a number of films together, most notably in Merchant Ivory productions. They had three children:Kunal Kapoor, Karan Kapoor and Sanjana Kapoor. Jennifer and Shashi established Prithvi theatre on 5 November 1978 in Mumbai. Jennifer died of cancer in 1984 which shattered him. The English actress Felicity Kendal is his sister-in-law.

Shashi Kapoor’s children, for a short while, became Hindi film actors but their European looks and accented Hindi prevented them from having a successful career. His elder son Kunal is married to director Ramesh Sippy's daughter and Sanjana is married to wildlife conservationist Valmik Thapar. Kunal moved on to ad film direction and established his production house Adfilm-Valas which is today extremely successful. Karan became successful in modelling and later settled down in London. He is an accomplished photographer.

Sunil Dutt

Sunil Dutt
Born	Balraj Dutt 6 June 1929 Jhelum, Punjab, British Raj (now in Punjab, Pakistan)
Died	25 May 2005 (aged 75) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Occupation	Actor, producer, director, politician
Height	6 ft (1.8 m)
Political party	Indian National Congress
Spouse(s)	Nargis (1958–1981; her death)
Children	Sanjay Dutt, Priya Dutt, andNamrata Dutt

          Sunil Dutt (6 June 1929 – 25 May 2005), born Balraj Dutt, was an Indian movie actor, producer, director and politician. He was theMinister of Youth Affairs and Sports in the Manmohan Singh government (2004 – 2005). His son, Sanjay Dutt, is also an actor, while daughter Priya Dutt, a former Member of Parliament.

In 1968, he was honoured with the Padma Shri by the Government of India. In 1984 he joined the Indian National Congress party and was elected to Parliament of India for five terms from the constituency of Mumbai North West.

Early life

         Sunil Dutt was born into a Punjabi family on 6 June 1929 in Khurd village, Jhelum district, West Punjab, British India (now inPakistan). When he was five years old, Dutt's father died. When he was 18, the Partition of India began inciting Hindu-Muslimviolence across the country. A Muslim named Yakub, who had been friends with Sunil's father, saved their entire family. The family resettled in a small village on the bank of river Yamuna called Mandauli in Yamuna Nagar district of Haryana. Later he moved toLucknow and spent a long time in Aminabad Galli during graduation and to fulfill his dreams he moved to Mumbai. In Mumbai, he joined Jai Hind College as an undergraduate and took up a job at the Mumbai's BEST Transport division.

Career

           Starting out in radio, Sunil Dutt was hugely popular on the Hindi Service of Radio Ceylon, the oldest radio station in South Asia. He moved to acting in Hindi films and got introduced to the film industry with the 1955 film Railway Platform. He shot to stardom in the 1957 film Mother India in which he co-starred with Nargis, whom he married on 11 March 1958. In the film, Dutt played a short-tempered, angry son of Nargis. During the making of this film a fire accident happened on the sets. It is believed that Dutt braved the raging fire to save Nargis and thereby won her love. He had one son Sanjay Dutt, also a successful film actor and two daughters, Priya Dutt and Namrata Dutt. His daughter Namrata married Kumar Gaurav, son of Rajendra Kumar. The two fathers were co-stars in Mother India.

Dutt was one of the major stars of Hindi cinema in the late 1950s and 1960s and continued to star in many successful films which included Sadhna (1958), Sujata (1959), Mujhe Jeene Do (1963), Khandan (1965) and Padosan (1967). His collaboration with B.R. Chopra proved to be successful in films such as Gumraah (1963), Waqt (1965) and Hamraaz(1967). One of his favourite writers and friends was Aghajani Kashmeri. Dutt created a record of sorts by directing and starring in the unique film Yaadein (1964) in which he was the only actor in the cast. He later turned producer of the 1968 film Man Ka Meet which introduced his brother Som Dutt who was unsuccessful in films. In 1971 he produced, directed and starred in the big-budget period romantic film Reshma Aur Shera (1971) which was a huge failure at the box office. He continued to star in hit films which includedHeera (1973), Pran Jaye Par Vachan Na Jaye (1974), Nagin (1976) andJaani Dushman (1979). He also starred in a series of Punjabi religious movies in the 1970s: Man Jeete Jag Jeet (1973), Dukh Bhanjan Tera Naam (1974), and Sat Sri Akal (1977).^{[citation needed]}

He launched his son Sanjay Dutt's career with the film Rocky in 1981 which was a success. Shortly after the film's release, Dutt's wife died of pancreatic cancer. He founded theNargis Dutt Foundation in her memory for the cure of cancer patients. He was also a sponsor of the India Project, a Nobel Peace Prize-nominated organisation akin to Operation Smile for the treatment of Indian children with facial deformities.^{[citation needed]}

In 1982 he was appointed as the Sheriff of Mumbai, an apolitical titular position, a position bestowed on him by the Maharashtra government for the period of a year. He turned character actor in 1980s often playing an elderly police officer or family patriarch at the centre of family feuds. He retired from the film industry in the early 1990s to turn to politics after his last few film releases including Parampara (1992) and Kshatriya (1993). His political career was halted for some years in the early 1990s when he worked to free his son from jail after he was arrested for keeping an AK-56, a Pistol and hand grenades – which he claimed was for protection of his family after bomb blasts in Mumbai.^{[citation needed]}

In 1995 he won the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to the film industry for four decades. He returned to films shortly before his death in the 2003 filmMunna Bhai M.B.B.S.. In this film he shared the screen with son Sanjay for the first time although they had both appeared earlier in Rocky (1981) and Kshatriya (1993).

Death

       Sunil Dutt died of a heart attack on 25 May 2005 at his residence in Bandra, Mumbai. His seat in Parliament was contested by his daughter, Priya Dutt, who won it and was a member of parliament from North West Mumbai between November 2005–April 2014.

Awards And honours

• 1963 – Filmfare Best Actor Award for Mujhe Jeene Do
• 1964 – National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi for Yaadein
• 1965 – Filmfare Best Actor Award for Khandan
• 1967 – BFJA Awards for Best Actor (Hindi) for Milan
• 1968 – Padma Shri
• 1982 – Sheriff of Mumbai
• 1995 – Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award
• 1997 – Star Screen Lifetime Achievement Award
• 1998 – Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana Award
• 2000 – Lifetime Achievement Award at the Anandalok Awards
• 2001 – Zee Cine Award for Lifetime Achievement
• 2005 – Phalke Ratna Award by the Dadasaheb Phalke Academy.
• Dutt was a recipient of the Glory of India Award by IIFS, London.

Selected Filmography

Acting Filmography

Film	Role
Railway Platform (1955)	Ram
Kundan (1955)	Amrit
Ek Hi Raasta (1956)	Amar
Kismet Ka Khel (1956)	Pratap
Mother India (1957)	Birju
Sadhna (1958)	Mohan
Sujata (1959)	Adhir
Insaan Jaag Utha (1959)	Ranjeet
Ek Phool Char Kaante (1960)	Sanjeev
Hum Hindustani (1960)	Surendra Nath
Chhaya (1961)	Arun / Rahee
Main Chup Rahoongi (1962)	Kamal Kumar
Gumraah (1963)	Rajendra
Mujhe Jeene Do (1963)	Thakur Jarnail Singh
Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke (1963)	Anilkumar G. Sahni
Aaj Aur Kal (1963)	Dr. Sanjay
Beti Bete (1964)	Ramu
Yaadein (1964)	Anil
Gazal (1964)	Ejaz
Khandan (1965)	Govind
Waqt (1965)	Ravi
Mera Saaya (1966)	Thakur Rakesh Singh
Hamraaz (1967)	Kumar
Meherbaan (1967)
Milan (1967)	Gopi
Padosan (1968)	Bhola
Jwala (1971)	(This was Madhubala's last movie)
Reshma Aur Shera (1971)	Shera
Heera (1973)	Heera
Geeta Mera Naam (1974)	Johnny
36 Ghante (1974)	Himmat
Zakhmee (1975)
Nagin (1976)	Professor Vijay
Darinda (1977)
Paapi (1977)	Raj Kumar
Kala Aadmi (1978)	Birjoo
Daaku Aur Jawaan (1978)
Jaani Dushman (1979)	Lakhan
Ahinsa (1979)	Birju
Shaan (1980)	Inspector Shiv Kumar
Rocky (1981)	Rocky's Father (Guest Appearance)
Badle Ki Aag (1982)	Lakhan
Dard Ka Rishta (1982)	Dr Ravi
Raaj Tilak (1984)	Jai Singh
Faasle (1985)	Vikram
Dharam Yudh (1989)
Kurbaan (1991)	Prithvi Singh
Yeh Aag Kab Bhujegi (1991)
Parampara (1992)	Thakur Bhavani Singh
Phool (1993)	Balram Choudhary
Kshatriya (1993)	Maharajah Bhavani Singh
Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. (2003)	Hariprasad Sharma

Joy Mukherjee

Joy Mukherjee
Born	24 February 1939 Jhansi, India
Died	9 March 2012 (aged 73) Mumbai, India
Residence	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Nationality	Indian
Other names	Joy Mukerjee; Joy Mukerji
Occupation	Film actor, director and producer
Years active	1960–2012
Spouse(s)	Neelam Mukherjee
Children	Monjoy Mukherjee Sujoy Mukherjee Simran Mukherjee
Parent(s)	Sashadhar Mukherjee Sati Devi
Relatives	Rono Mukherjee (Brother) Deb Mukherjee (Brother) Shomu Mukherjee (Brother) Shubir Mukherjee (Brother) See Mukherjee-Samarth family

Joy Mukherjee (24 February 1939 – 9 March 2012) was an Indian film actor and director.

Family background

Joy Mukherjee was the son of Sashadhar Mukherjee and Sati Devi. His father was a successful producer and a co-founder of Filmalaya Studios. His uncles were director Subodh Mukherjee, Ashok Kumar, Anoop Kumar (Actor) and Kishore Kumar.Joy Mukherjee was educated in Col. Brown Cambridge School in Dehra Dun and St. Xavier College. .The name of his wife is Neelam. They have two sons MONJOY, SUJOY and a daughter Simran.

Career

       Joy debuted opposite Sadhana in the film Love in Simla (1960) directed by R.K. Nayyar. After Love in Simla, he paired with Asha Parekh for several hits like Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Love in Tokyo and Ziddi. Some of his films like Door Ki Aawaz, Aao Pyar Karenand Shagird (opposite Saira Bano), Ek Musafir Ek Haseena with Sadhna, 'Ishaara' with Vyjayantimala and 'Jee Chahta Hai' with Rajashree were superhit movies. Most of his movies had hit music (Ek Musafir Ek Haseena, Aao Pyar Karen, Shagird, Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon, Ek Baar Muskura Do, Door Ki Aawaz, Jee Chahta Hai, Humsaya, etc.) By the late 1960s acting roles began drying up, so he began directing and producing.

       He produced and directed Humsaya although neither that film nor his subsequent films as producer or director did well. Despite a late success with home production Ek Baar Muskura Do (1972) with brother Deb Mukherjee and later to be sister-in-law Tanuja, Joy faded from the silver screen. His last success came directing Chailla Babu. In 2009 he acted in the television serial Aye Dil-e-Nadanin DD National along with his son Sujoy Mukherjee.

Death

      Joy Mukherjee died at the age of 73 on 9 March 2012 in Lilavati Hospital, Mumbai. He was placed on a ventilator near the end of his life. He was survived by his wife and children.

Deb Mukherjee

     Deb Mukherjee (or Mukherji) (Bengali: দেব মুখার্জি) is a Bengali Indian actor. His son is director Ayan Mukerji.

     He is part of the famous Mukherjee family which spans four generations. His family has been in the Bollywood industry since the 1940s. His father was Sashadhar Mukherjee, the owner of Filmalaya studios, who produced Love in Shimla (1960). His brothers are Joy Mukherjee, a successful actor in the 60s and Shomu Mukherjee, the husband of actress Tanuja. His nieces are actressesKajol and her sister Tanisha. Other members of the Mukherjee family include Rani Mukerji and Sharbani Mukherjee, and part of theMukherjee-Samarth family.

Deb Mukherjee
Born	Kanpur
Occupation	Actor
Spouse(s)	Manisha Mukherjee
Children	Ayan Mukherjee
Parent(s)	Sashadhar Mukherjee Sati Devi
Relatives	Rono Mukherjee (Brother) Joy Mukherjee (Brother) Shomu Mukherjee (Brother) Shubir Mukherjee (Brother) See Mukherjee-Samarth family

Kishore Kumar

Kishore Kumar
Native name	কিশোর কুমার
Birth name	Abhas Kumar Ganguly
Born	4 August 1929 Khandwa, Central Provinces and Berar, British India
Died	13 October 1987 (aged 58) Mumbai, Maharashtra India
Genres	Classical, rock and roll, dance
Occupation(s)	Singer, lyricist, composer, actor, film producer, director, script writer, screenplay writer, entertainer, record producer
Instruments	Vocals, Piano
Years active	1946–1987

      Kishore Kumar (born Abhas Kumar Ganguly 4 August 1929 – 13 October 1987) was an Indian film playback singer, actor, lyricist, composer, producer, director, screenplay writer and scriptwriter. He is in general considered one of the most successful & greatest playback singers of the film industry. He sang in many Indian languages       Including Bengali, Hindi, Marathi, Assamese, Gujarati,Kannada, Bhojpuri, Malayalam, Oriya, and Urdu. He has also sung in private albums in several languages especially in Bengali which are noted as all time classics. He won 8 Filmfare Awards for Best Male Playback Singer and holds the record for winning the mostFilmfare Awards in that category. He was awarded the "Lata Mangeshkar Award" by the Madhya Pradesh government and from that year onwards, the Madhya Pradesh Government initiated a new award called the "Kishore Kumar Award" for contributions to Hindi cinema.

Early life

      Kishore Kumar was born in a Bengali Ganguly family in Khandwa, Central Provinces and Berar (now in Madhya Pradesh) as Abhas Kumar Ganguly. His father Kunjalal Ganguly (Gangopadhyay) was a lawyer and his mother Gouri Devi came from a wealthy Bengali family. Kunjalal Gangopadhyaya was invited by the Kamavisadar Gokhale family of Khandwa to be their personal lawyer. Kishore was the youngest of four siblings, the other three were Ashok (the eldest), Sati Devi, and Anoop. While Kishore was still a child, his brother Ashok became a Bollywood actor. Later, Anoop also ventured into cinema with Ashok's help. Spending time with his brothers, Kishore became interested in films and music. He became a fan of singer-actor K. L. Saigal—whom he considered his guru, and tried to emulate his singing style. He has done his graduation from Christian College, Indore. 

Career

      After Ashok became a star of Hindi films, the Ganguly family visited Mumbai regularly. Abhas Kumar changed his name to Kishore and started his cinema career as a chorus singer at Bombay Talkies, where his brother worked. Kumar's first film appearance was in Shikari (1946), in which his brother Ashok played the lead role. Music director Khemchand Prakash gave Kumar a chance to sing "Marne ki duayen kyon mangu" for the film Ziddi (1948). After this, Kumar was offered many other assignments, but he was not very serious about a film career. In 1949, he settled in Mumbai. Kumar played the hero in the Bombay Talkies film Andolan (1951), directed by Phani Majumdar. Although he got some acting assignments with the help of his brother, he was more interested in becoming a singer. Ashok wanted Kumar to be an actor like him.

      Kumar next starred in Bimal Roy's Naukri (1954) and Hrishikesh Mukherjee's directorial debut Musafir (1957). Salil Chowdhury, the music director for Naukri, was initially dismissive of Kumar as a singer when he found that Kumar had no formal training in music. However, after hearing his voice, Chowdhury gave him the song Chhota sa ghar hoga, which was supposed to be sung by Hemant Kumar. Kumar starred in films New Delhi (1957), Aasha (1957), Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958), Half Ticket (1962), and Padosan (1968). Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958), his home production, starred the three Ganguly brothers and Madhubala. Kumar played a car mechanic who has a romance with a city girl (Madhubala) with a subplot involving the brothers.

Music director S. D. Burman is credited with spotting Kumar's talent for singing. During the making of Mashaal (1950), Burman visited Ashok's house, where he heard Kumar imitating K. L. Saigal. He complimented him and told him that he should develop a style of his own, instead of copying Saigal. Kumar eventually developed his own style of singing, which featured yodeling, which he had heard on the records of Tex Morton and Jimmie Rodgers.

Burman recorded in Kumar's voice for Dev Anand's Munimji (1954), Taxi Driver (1954), House No. 44 (1955), Funtoosh (1956), Nau Do Gyarah (1957), Paying Guest (1957),Guide (1965), Jewel Thief (1967), Prem Pujari (1970), and Tere Mere Sapne (1971). He also composed music for Kumar's home production Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958). Some of their songs were; "Maana Janaab Ne Pukara Nahin" from Paying Guest, "Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke" from Nau Do Gyarah (1957), "Ai Meri Topi Palat Ke Aa" from Funtoosh, and "Ek Ladki Bheegi Bhaagi Si" and "Haal Kaisa Hai Janaab Ka" from Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958).^[10] Asha Bhosle and Kumar performed duets composed by Burman including "Chhod Do Aanchal" from Paying Guest (1957), "Ankhon Mein Kya Ji" from Nau Do Gyarah (1957), "Haal Kaisa Hai Janaab Ka" and "Paanch Rupaiya Baara Aana" from Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958) and "Arre Yaar Meri Tum Bhi Ho Gajab" from Teen Deviyan (1965).^[11]

Music director C. Ramchandra also recognized Kumar's talent as a singer.^[8] They collaborated on songs including "Eena Meena Deeka" from Aasha (1957). Kishore Kumar's work includes "Nakhrewaali" from New Delhi (1956) by Shankar Jaikishan, "C.A.T. Cat Maane Billi" and "Hum To Mohabbat Karega" from Dilli Ka Thug (1958) by Ravi, and "Chhedo Na Meri Zulfein" from Ganga Ki Lahren (1964) by Chitragupta.

Kumar produced, directed, acted in composed the music for Jhumroo (1961), and wrote the lyrics for the film's title song, "Main Hoon Jhumroo". Later, he produced and directed Door Gagan Ki Chhaon Mein (1964). He wrote the script and composed music for the film, which is about the relationship between a father (Kishore Kumar) and his deaf and mute son (played by his real-life son (Amit Kumar).

In the 1960s, as an actor, Kishore Kumar built up a notoriety for coming late for the shootings or bunking them altogether. His films flopped frequently and he landed in income tax trouble. As a singer, his work in this period includes "Zaroorat Hai Zaroorat Hai" from Manmauji (1961), "Gaata Rahe Mera Dil" from Guide (1965), and "Yeh Dil Na Hota Bechara" from Jewel Thief (1967).

In the late 1960s, Rahul Dev Burman worked with Kishore Kumar on the soundtrack of the film Padosan (1968), in which Kumar sang "Mere Saamne Wali Khidki Mein" and "Kehna Hai." Padosan was a comedy in which Kumar as a dramatist-musician, Mehmood as a Carnatic music and dance teacher, and Sunil Dutt as a simpleton named Bhola. Kumar's character was inspired by his uncle, Dhananjay Bannerjee, a classical singer. The highlight of the film was a musical, comical duel between Kishore Kumar-Sunil Dutt and Mehmood: "Ek Chatur Nar Karke Singaar."

In 1969, Shakti Samanta produced and directed Aradhana. He sang two songs in the film; "Meri Sapnon Ki Rani" and "Roop Tera Mastana". Shakti Samanta suggested that Kumar sing the other songs. When the film was released, Kumar's two songs established him as a leading Bollywood playback singer. Kishore Kumar won his first Filmfare award for"Roop Tera Mastana".

1970s and 1980s

In the 1970s and 1980s, Kumar sang for Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Jeetendra, Sanjeev Kumar, Dev Anand, Shashi Kapoor, Mithun Chakraborty, Vinod Khanna, Dilip Kumar, Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Rajiv Kapoor, Sanjay Dutt, Sunny Deol, Anil Kapoor, Rakesh Roshan, Dilip Kumar, Pran, Sachin, Vinod Mehra, Rajini Kanth,Chunky Pandey, Kumar Gaurav, Govinda and Jackie Shroff.^{[citation needed]}

S. D. Burman and Kumar continued to work together, including "Phoolon Ke Rang Se" and "Shokhiyon Mein Ghola Jaaye" from Prem Pujari (1969), "Aaj Madhosh Hua Jaaye Re," "Khilte Hain Gul Yahan" and "O Meri Sharmilee" from Sharmilee (1971), "Meet na mila" from Abhimaan (1973), and "Jeevan ki Bagiya mehkegi" from Tere Mere Sapne(1974). In 1975, S. D. Burman composed his last song for Kumar; "Badi Sooni Sooni Hai" for the film Mili.^[8]

R.D. Burman recorded several songs with Kumar in the 1970s, including "O Maajhi Re" from Khushboo, "Yeh Shaam Mastaani" and "Yeh Jo Mohabbat Hai" from Kati Patang(1971), "Raat Kali Ek Khwab Mein Aayi" from Buddha Mil Gaya (1971) and "Chingari Koi Bhadke (Amar Prem)" and "Jab Bhi Koi Kangana" from Shaukeen (1986). Although he was not formally trained in the classical music, R.D. Burman often had Kumar sing semi-classical songs, such as "Hamein Tum Se Pyaar Kitna" from Kudrat and "Mere Naina Saawan Bhadon" from Mehbooba.^{[citation needed]}

R.D. Burman recorded several duets pairing Kumar with Asha Bhosle and with Lata Mangeshkar, including "Panna Ki Tamanna" from Heera Panna (1973), "Neend Chura Ke Raaton Mein" from the film Shareef Budmaash, "Rimjhim Gire Sawan" from Manzil, "Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai" from Sanjay Dutt's debut film Rocky (1981), "Jaane Ja Dhoondta" and "Kharoshoo" from Harjai (1982).^{[citation needed]}

Apart from the Burmans, Kumar worked with other music directors. The composer duo Laxmikant-Pyarelal (L-P) composed many songs sung by him, including "Mere Mehboob Qayamat Hogi" from Mr. X In Bombay, "Mere Naseeb Mein Aye Dost" from Do Raaste, "Yeh Jeevan Hai" from Piya Ka Ghar, "Mere Dil Mein Aaj Kya Hai" from Daag, "Nahi Mai Nahi Dekh Sakta" from Majboor, "Mere diwanepan ki bhi" from Mehboob Ki Mehndi, "Naach Meri Bulbul" from Roti, "Chal Chal Mere Haathi" from Haathi Mere Saathi and "Tu Kitne Baras Ki" from Karz. L-P also worked with Kumar and Mohammed Rafi on duets for the films Dostana, Ram Balram and Deedaar-E-Yaar. L-P composed I love you (Kaate Nahin Katate Yeh Din Yeh Raat)" from Mr. India in (1987), a duet with Kumar and Alisha Chinoy. Salil Chowdhury recorded songs like "Koi Hota Jisko Apna" from Mere Apne and "Gujar Gaye Din Din" from Annadata. Ravindra Jain recorded "Ghungroo Ki Tarah" and the duets "Le Jaayenge Le Jaayenge" from Chor Machaye Shor and "Tota Maina Ki Kahani" from Fakira.

Khayyam recorded Kumar's duets with Lata Mangeshkar, including "Hazaar Raahein" from Thodisi Bewafaii and Aankhon Mein Humne Aapke Sapne Sajaye Hain, Chandani Raat Mein Ek Bar. Hridaynath Mangeshkar recorded Zindagi Aa Raha Hoon Main from Mashaal. Kalyanji Anandji recorded several songs with Kumar including Zindagi Ka Safarand Jeevan Se Bhari Teri Aankhein, from Safar, O Saathi Re from Muqaddar Ka Sikandar and Pal Bhar Ke Liye from Johny Mera Naam.

Kumar worked with other composers including Rajesh Roshan, Sapan Chakraborty and Bappi Lahiri. Kumar sang Bhool Gaya Sab Kuchh (duet with Lata Mangeshkar) and Dil Kya Kare Jab Kisise for Rajesh Roshan's film Julie. Their other songs include Yaadon Mein Woh from Swami, Chhookar Mere Man Ko Kiya Toone Kya Ishaara fromYaarana and Kahiye, Suniye (duet with Asha Bhosle) from Baton Baton Mein. Bappi Lahiri also recorded many songs with Kishore Kumar, including Pag Ghunghroo Bandh fromNamak Halaal (1982), Manzilen Apni Jagah Hai from Sharaabi (1984) and Saason Se Nahi Kadmose Nahi from Mohabbat in (1987) and duets with (Lata Mangeshkar)) likeAlbela Mausamand Pyar Ka Tohfa from Tohfa (1985). Kishore and Bappi pair also recorded hits in Bengali, including Chirodini Tumi Je Amar from Amar Sangee (1987) and E Amar Gurudakshina from Gurudakshina (1987). Another Bengali musician was Ajay Das who made many hit songs using Kishore Kumar's voice. He also recorded a duet songHello hello kya haal hai with Asha Bhosle for Naushad in 1975 for the movie Sunehra Sansar, this is the only song of Kishore Kumar for Naushad.^{[citation needed]}

During the Indian Emergency (1975–1977), Sanjay Gandhi asked Kumar to sing for an Indian National Congress rally in Mumbai, but he refused. As a result, Information and broadcasting minister Vidya Charan Shukla (1975–1977) put an unofficial ban on playing Kishore Kumar songs on state broadcasters All India Radio and Doordarshan from 4 May 1976 till the end of Emergency.

Later years

Kishore Kumar produced and directed some movies in the late 1970s and early 1980s, such as Badhti Ka Naam Daadhi (1978), Zindagi (1981) and Door Wadiyon Mein Kahin(1980)—his last appearance as an actor. With patronage from R. D. Burman and Rajesh Roshan, Kumar's son Amit Kumar became a Bollywood singer in the 1980s. Kumar continued singing for several actors and performed in stage shows to earn money to pay his income tax arrears. Kumar stopped singing for Amitabh Bachchan in the mid-1980s after Bachchan refused to appear as a guest in the film Mamta Ki Chhaon Mein which Kumar produced, but called a truce with Amitabh by singing for him inToofan. He also temporarily stopped singing for Mithun Chakraborty after Yogeeta Bali divorced him and married Chakraborty. However, Kumar sang for Chakraborty inSurakkhsha in the 1970s, and in the 1980s in many films, including Disco Dancer, Fareib and Waqt Ki Awaz.

In the mid-1980s, Kumar sang for Anil Kapoor in Kapoor's debut film as a leading man, Woh Saat Din and also recorded Mr. India. He sang a duet with Alka Yagnik, "Tumse Badhkar Duniya Mein Na Dekha" for Kaamchor in 1982 and recorded some songs for the film Saagar with R. D. Burman. By this time, Kumar had decided to retire and was planning to return to his birthplace Khandwa.

On 13 October 1987—his brother Ashok's 76th birthday—he died of a heart attack in Mumbai at 4:45 pm. His body was taken to Khandwa for cremation. Kumar had recorded his last song, Guru Guru—a duet with Asha Bhosle for the film Waqt Ki Aawaz (1988) composed by Bappi Lahiri for Mithun Chakraborty and Sridevi—the day before he died.^{[citation needed]} His song Pal Bhar Ke Liye from the film Johny Mera Naam (1970) was used in an episode of The Simpsons titled "Kiss Kiss, Bang Bangalore".^[20] His songs have been featured in several films, including Such a Long Journey (1998) and Side Streets (1998). Sony TV organised the television singing contest K For Kishore to search for a singer like Kishore Kumar.

Personal life

Kishore Kumar married four times. His first wife was Bengali singer and actress Ruma Guha Thakurta aka Ruma Ghosh. Their marriage lasted from 1950 to 1958. His second wife was actress Madhubala, who had worked with him on many films including his home production Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi (1958) and Jhumroo (1961). When Kumar proposed to her, Madhubala was sick and was planning to go to London for treatment. She had a ventricular septal defect (hole in the heart), and he was married to Ruma. After his divorce, the couple had a civil wedding in 1960 because Kumar was Bengali Hindu (Brahmin) and Madhubala was Muslim. His parents refused to attend. The couple also had a Hindu ceremony to please Kumar's parents, but Madhubala was never truly accepted as his wife. Within a month of her wedding she moved back to her bungalow in Bandra because of tension in the Kumar household. They remained married but under great strain for the remainder of Madhubala's life. Their marriage ended with Madhubala's death on 23 February 1969.

Kumar's third marriage was to Yogeeta Bali, and lasted from 1976 to 4 August 1978. Kishore was married to Leena Chandavarkar from 1980 until his death. He had two sons,Amit Kumar with Ruma, and Sumit Kumar with Leena Chandavarkar.

       Kumar is said to have been paranoid about not being paid. During recordings, he would sing only after his secretary confirmed that the producer had made the payment. On one occasion, when he discovered that his dues had not been fully paid, he appeared on set with makeup on only one side of his face. When the director questioned him, he replied "Aadha paisa to aadha make-up." (Half make-up for half payment). On the sets of Bhai Bhai, Kishore Kumar refused to act because the director M V Raman owed him 5,000. Ashok Kumar persuaded him to do the scene but when the shooting started, Kumar walked across the floor, walked a few places and said, Paanch Hazzar Rupaiya (five thousand rupees) and did a somersault. After he reached the end of the floor, he left the studio. On another occasion, when producer R.C. Talwar did not pay his dues in spite of repeated reminders, Kumar arrived at Talwar's residence and shouting "Hey Talwar, de de mere aath hazaar" ("Hey Talwar, give me my eight thousand") every morning until Talwar paid him.

      The film Anand (1971) was originally supposed to star Kumar and Mehmood Ali in the lead. Hrishikesh Mukherjee, the director of the film, was asked to meet Kumar to discuss the project. However, when he went to Kumar's house he was driven away by the gatekeeper due to a misunderstanding. Kumar—himself a Bengali—had not been paid for a stage show organized by another Bengali man and had instructed his gatekeeper to drive away this "Bengali", if he ever visited the house. Consequently, Mehmood had to leave the film as well, and new actors (Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan) were signed up for the film.

In spite of his "no money, no work" principle, sometimes Kumar recorded for free even when the producers were willing to pay. Such films include those produced by Rajesh Khanna and Danny Denzongpa. On one occasion, Kumar helped actor-turned-producer Bipin Gupta by giving him 20,000 for the film Dal Mein Kala (1964). When actor Arun Kumar Mukherjee—one of the first persons to appreciate Kishore's singing talent—died, Kumar regularly sent money to Mukherjee's family in Bhagalpur.

Many journalists and writers have written about Kishore Kumar's seemingly eccentric behavior. He placed a sign that said "Beware of Kishore" at the door of his Warden Road flat. Once, producer-director H. S. Rawail, who owed him some money, visited his flat to pay the dues. Kumar took the money and when Rawail offered to shake hands with him, Kumar reportedly put Rawail's hand in his mouth, bit it and asked "Didn’t you see the sign?". Rawail laughed off the incident and left quickly. According to another reported incident, once Kumar was due to record a song for producer-director G. P. Sippy. As Sippy approached his bungalow, he saw Kumar going out in his car. Sippy asked Kumar to stop his car but Kumar increased his speed. Sippy chased him to Madh Island where Kumar finally stopped his car near the ruined Madh Fort. When Sippy questioned his strange behavior, Kumar refused to recognize or talk to him and threatened to call the police. The next morning, Kumar reported for the recording session. An angry Sippy questioned him about his behaviour the previous day but Kumar said that Sippy must have dreamt the incident and said that he was in Khandwa on the previous day.

        Once, a producer went to court to get a decree that Kumar must follow the director's orders. As a consequence, he obeyed the director to the letter. He refused to alight from his car until the director ordered him to do so. After filming a car scene in Mumbai, Kumar drove until he reached Khandala because the director forgot to say "Cut". In the 1960s, a financier named Kalidas Batvabbal, who was disgusted with Kumar's alleged lack of cooperation during the shooting of Half Ticket, reported to the income tax authorities, who raided his house. Later, Kumar invited Batvabbal to his home, asked him to enter a cupboard for a chat and locked him inside. He unlocked Batvabbal after two hours and told him, "Don’t ever come to my house again".

Kishore Kumar was a loner; in an interview with Pritish Nandy (1985) he said that he had no friends—he preferred talking to his trees instead. Once, when a reporter made a comment about how lonely he must be, Kishore Kumar took her to his garden, named some of the trees there and introduced them to the reporter as his closest friends.

Manoj Kumar

Manoj Kumar
Manoj Kumar at Esha Deol's wedding ceremony, June 2012.
Born	Harikrishna Giri Goswami 24 July 1937 (age 77) Abbottabad, North-West Frontier Province, British India
Residence	Mumbai
Other names	Bharat Kumar Manoj
Occupation	Actor , Director
Years active	1964–1995
Spouse(s)	Sashi Goswami

      Manoj Kumar (born Harikrishna Giri Goswami on 24 July 1937) is an award-winning Indian actor and director in the Bollywoodfilm industry. He is remembered for his films Hariyali Aur Raasta, Woh Kaun Thi?, Himalaya Ki God Mein, Do Badan, Upkar, Patthar Ke Sanam, Neel Kamal, Purab Aur Paschim, Roti Kapda Aur Makaan, and Kranti. He is known for acting in and directing films with patriotic themes, and has been given the nickname "Bharat Kumar". In 1992,93 he was honoured with the Padma Shriby the Government of India.

Early life

      Manoj Kumar was born in Abbottabad, a town of North-West Frontier Province (now Khyber Pakhtunkhwa), then part of British India. His original name was Harikishan Giri Goswami. When he was 10, his family had to flee to Delhi due to the partition. His family lived as refugees in Vijay Nagar, Kingsway Camp and later moved to Patel Nagar area of New Delhi.

     After graduating from Hindu College, University of Delhi, he decided to enter the film industry.

Career

As a youth, he admired Bollywood superstar Dilip Kumar, and decided to name himself Manoj Kumar after Dilip's character in Shabnam (1949).

After making a little-noticed début in Fashion in 1957, Manoj landed his first leading role in Kaanch Ki Gudia (1960) opposite Sayeeda Khan. Piya Milan Ki Aas and Reshmi Roomal followed, setting the stage for the Vijay Bhatt-directed Hariyali Aur Raasta (1962) opposite Mala Sinha. Kumar then appeared with Sadhana in Raj Khosla's Woh Kaun Thi(1964), and reunited with Vijay Bhatt and Mala Sinha in Himalaya Ki God Mein (1965). Manoj Kumar and Raj Khosla repeated their successful Actor-Director partnership with the film Do Badan, which was remembered for many reasons including Raj Khosla's great direction, Manoj Kumar and the heroine Asha Parekh's excellent display of histrionics, an outstanding musical score by Ravi, immortal songs by the lyricist Shakeel Badayuni, among others.

The patriotic hero

      Kumar's image as the patriotic hero started with the 1965 film Shaheed, based on the life of Bhagat Singh, the most influential Indian revolutionary. After the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri asked him to create a film based on the popular slogan Jai Jawan Jai Kissan (hail the soldier, hail the farmer).

      The result was Kumar's magnum opus and his directorial debut, Upkaar (1967). In it, he played both a soldier and a farmer. The film was also noted for the famous song Mere Desh Ki Dharti, written by Gulshan Bawra, composed by Kalyanji-Anandji and sung by Mahendra Kapoor. Upkaar was a hit and won Kumar his first Filmfare Best Director Award.

After dabbling in various roles in the late 1950, Manoj returned to patriotic themes in Purab Aur Paschim (1970), in which life in the East and West are juxtaposed. In 1972, he starred in Be-Imaan (for which he won the Filmfare Best Actor Award) and directed and starred in Shor (1972). The latter, opposite Nanda, was not a huge box office success, but it did feature the memorable song Ek Pyar Ka Nagma Hai, a duet by Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh, which was composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal and written by Santosh Anand.

Later career

      In the mid-1970s Kumar starred in three hit films: Roti Kapda Aur Makaan (1974) was a social commentary featuring an all-star cast including Zeenat Aman, Shashi Kapoor andAmitabh Bachchan that won him his second Filmfare Award for Best Director; Sanyasi (1975) had Kumar and Hema Malini in the lead roles of a religious-themed comedy; andDus Numbri (1976) also gave Kumar and Hema top billing. In 1981, Kumar reached the peak of his career when he got the opportunity to direct his idol, Dilip Kumar, as well as star in Kranti, a story about the struggle for Indian independence in the 19th century. Kranti was the last notable successful film in his career. He also starred in the hit Punjabi filmJat Punjabi.

      After Kranti, Kumar's career began to decline in the 1980s as all of his films failed at the box office. In 1989 he cast Pakistani actors Mohammad Ali and Zeba in his film Clerkwhich was considered to be a groundbreaking event. He quit acting after his appearance in the 1995 film Maidan-E-Jung. His son, Kunal Goswami, tried to revive the patriotic theme and was directed by Kumar in the 1999 film Jai Hind which was a flop. Kumar was awarded the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award that same year.

      His trademark hand-covering-the-face was very popular and continues to be the butt of jokes of latter day stand-up comedians. In 2007, the Shah Rukh Khan film Om Shanti Omfeatured the lead character pretending to be Manoj Kumar so as to sneak into a movie premiere, by holding his hand over his face. Kumar filed a lawsuit, which was settled out of court.

Politics

     Like many other Bollywood stars, Kumar decided to enter politics following his retirement. Before the 2004 general election in India, it was announced that he had officially joined the ranks of the Shiv Sena

Personal life

     Kumar is married to Shashi Goswami (originally from Jodhkan, Sirsa district, Haryana). He has two sons, Vishal and Kunal. Vishal tried his luck as a singer and Kunal as an actor. His brother, Rajiv Goswami, also entered the film industry, but none were able to gain a footing in Bollywood.