Ayushi Kar

When a shy 22-year-old Yousuf Khan from Peshawar was picked to star in Bombay Talkies’ production Jwar Bhata in 1944, the stage was set for the emergence of India’s biggest acting legend.

Renamed Dilip Kumar, in his first screen appearance, Bollywood’s Original Khan passed away in Mumbai on Wednesday at the age of 98, after inspiring generations of actors with his intense performances in films like Mughal-e-Azam , Devdas, Gunga Jumna, Jugnu and Deedar. His last appearance was in Qila in 1998.

Dilip Kumar, as the tragic loner and romantic hero in Devdas (1955), won him the moniker ‘Tragedy King of Bollywood’. But he demonstrated his acting prowess across genres from comedy to crime. He had his audience in splits in Azaad (1955) and Ram aur Shyam (1967), got under the skin of his princely character in Mughal-e-Azam (1960) perfectly and was equally convincing in social drama Daag (1952). He was a dedicated actor, devoting his time, attention and energies to only one film at a time.

Socialist hero

Dilip Kumar is also considered a ‘Socialist Hero’, with Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru being a major admirer of his work. In his book Nehru’s Hero: Dilip Kumar in the Life of India , development economist Lord Meghnad Desai recounts how India’s socio-political changes in the 1950s reflect in the late actor’s career. In Dilip Kumar and his movies between 1944 and 1964, Desai saw India gaining its voice since Independence. The 1948 film Shaheed had fired the actor’s imagination to explore socially relevant subjects in his movies.

The impact he had on people’s life was evident on Wednesday with condolences pouring in for the thespian from his fans all across the world, including stalwarts of Bollywood and Indian cinema. “An institution has gone,” said the Big B of Bollywood, Amitabh Bachchan.

“Whenever the history of Indian Cinema will be written , it shall always be ‘before Dilip Kumar, and after Dilip Kumar’ .. My duas for peace of his soul and the strength to the family to bear this loss...Deeply saddened,” Bachchan added.

Dilip Kumar had been ailing for some time and was admitted to Mumbai’s PD Hinduja Hospital on June 30 after experiencing breathlessness. His last rites were conducted at the Juhu Qabrastan on Wednesday evening. He leaves behind a rich legacy of over 60 films spanning six decades. Dilip Kumar is survived by his wife of 75 years, actress Saira Banu.

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