Dilip Kumar (1922-2021): The legend's best cinematic tales

From 'Azaad' to 'Ram Aur Shyam', here are some of Dilip Kumar's best cinematic tales

Azaad (1955): His name is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records for winning the maximum number of awards by an Indian actor. Shanti, Azaad and Daag were some of his awarded films.

Devdas (1955): Bimal Roy’s adaptation of the classic novel saw Kumar as the self-destructive alcoholic lover in an award-winning performance.

Naya Daur (1957): Chronicling the stories of a newly independent India, the BR Chopra-directed film saw Kumar as a horse cart rider challenging a business owner’s son hoping to modernise his business by replacing carts with buses.

Musafir (1957): In the 50s, he was among the first actors to charge a then-hefty fee of Rs 1 lakh per film. Musafir was one of the movies to release in the era.

Also Read: Poonam Dhillon: When we used to play scrabble, he would make up his own words

Mughal-e-Azam (1960): Director K Asif’s epic historical drama that took over a decade to complete saw Kumar as Prince Salim, who falls in love with a court dancer against his father, Emperor Akbar’s wishes. It has held the record for being the highest grossing Indian film for 15 years after its release.

Kohinoor (1960): Kumar sought psychological help for the tragic roles he played in the 50s. He subsequently took on lighter roles, and was applauded for his comic skills. Kohinoor, featuring Meena Kumari, was one such offering. For this film, Kumar invested a fair amount of time in learning to play the sitar. Apparently, for the Naushad Ali track Madhuban mein Radhika nache re, he aced a scene involving the sitar and tarana. He asked the director to defer shooting the scene so that he could take a few months to learn it. 

Also Read: Subhash Ghai: Dilip Kumar asked me to work on Raaj Kumar’s role in 'Saudagar'

Gunga Jumna (1961): Kumar also wrote the film, which is also believed to be his only production. It follows two siblings on opposite sides of the law. The film inspired Yash Chopra’s Deewar (1975).

Ram Aur Shyam (1967): Kumar’s rare comic performance saw him play twins separated at birth in a film starring Waheeda Rehman and Mumtaz.

Also Read: Javed Akhtar: Dilip saab was first method actor in world cinema

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