Murtaza Ali Khan

Cinema legend Dilip Kumar has passed away at the age of 98, following prolonged illness. He is survived by his wife, actor Saira Banu.

Immediately after the news broke out on Wednesday , July 7, morning, heartfelt tributes from all across the globe started pouring in, as Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray announced a state funeral for the Bollywood legend.

Born Mohammed Yusuf Khan in 1922 in Peshawar, now in Pakistan, he became known to the world by the screen name of Dilip Kumar once he joined the Hindi film industry in the 1940s.The original king of tragedy who’s revered the world over for his iconic screen performances in films such as Devdas (1955), Naya Daur (1957), Mughal-e-Azam (1960), Ganga Jamuna (1961), Ram Aur Shayam (1967), Sagina Mahato (1970), Kranti (1981), Shakti (1982), Karma (1986), and Saudagar (1991) was laid to rest at the Juhu Qabrastan in Santacruz Mumbai. Dilip Sahab was draped in the tricolor, given a gun salute after which band of police personnel paid him their tribute. The funeral was completed with COVID restrictions in place as only family and close friends were allowed to attend it. Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan was among the few B-town celebs who attended the funeral.

There was a time when young people hailing from good families couldn’t dream of taking up acting as a profession. For, the profession was looked down upon. But, Dilip Sahab not only brought dignity to the profession but also inspired numerous young men and women to follow his footsteps and become legendary figures in their own right. He was a method actor long before the movie stars in the West even knew what it actually meant to be a method actor. In fact, he was so deeply involved into his roles that he had to consult a psychologist who advised him to avoid doing serious roles to keep his sanity intact. That’s precisely why he had to turn down Pyaasa (1957).

But, he was able to soon turn the tide by successfully playing rather light hearted characters which allowed him to further diversify himself as a performer. He famously turned down David Lean’s offer to play Sherif Ali in Lawrence of Arabia (1962) in order to focus on his work in Hindi cinema. A truly consummate actor, Dilip Kumar took on Amitabh Bachchan at the height of his fame in ‘Shakti’ and yet again came out supreme, winning the Filmfare Award for Best Actor in 1983. He subsequently went on to play pivotal roles in films like Mashaal (1984), Karma (1986), and Saudagar (1991). The 1998 film Qila was his last film.

As a performer, Dilip Sahab was always ahead of his time and never backed down from new challenges. In the 1954 film titled ‘Amar’, he played the central character of a lawyer named Amarnath who is known for his sense of justice. Now, as per his father’s wish Amarnath agrees to marry Anju (essayed by Madhubala) who is a Western educated girl and quite open minded. But on one rainy night he gets enticed by a milkwoman’s beauty and is unable to stop himself from raping her. Try and imagine Dilip Kumar, a heartthrob of the nation, in a newly independent India of the early 1950s, raping a girl on the silver screen. Of course, the act of rape isn’t shown but merely implied symbolically via the shattering of the window pane.

Now, any other actor in his place would have refused to do the scene. It was really too much for the ’50s but Dilip Kumar seldom backed down from challenges. He went ahead with it once he was convinced that the story demanded it. Moreover, there would be repercussions for Amarnath which would ensure that the scene isn’t misinterpreted by the audiences. Clearly, even as early as the ’40s and ’50s, Dilip Sahab was a trailblazer who was constantly pushing the boundaries of acting and setting up new standards with each new performance. By the ’70s, he attained the stature of an acting institution that has continued to inspire generations of artists. His death truly marks the end of an era. For, there will never be another Dilip Kumar. To quote Amitabh Bachchan: “An epic era has drawn curtains… Never to happen again.”

                (Murtaza Ali Khan is an Indian Film & TV Critic / Journalist who has been covering the world of entertainment for over 10 years. He tweets at @MurtazaCritic and can be mailed at: murtaza@apotpourriofvestiges.com. His video essays / commentaries can be watched on his YouTube Channel at: https://www.youtube.com/c/murtaza19alikhan).

Dilip Kumar only Indian actor to receive highest Pak honor

Dilip Kumar’s ancestral home, where he was born and spent his early days, recently made it to the news, for the Pakistani Government wished to buy it and turn it into a museum, along with Raj Kapoor’s ancestral property. The house, located in the Qissa Khawani Bazaar of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, is more than 100 years old, and has been declared a national heritage of Pakistan. Raj Kapoor was not only Dilip Kumar’s contemporary. Their association goes back to living in neigbouring “havelis”, being schoolmates and studying in the same college (Khalsa College). And, evidently, it was Raj Kapoor who first told Dilip that he could be a star.

When Dilip’s father, Lala Ghulam Sarwar Khan, came to know of his career switch from fruit trader to film actor, Raj, as a true friend, came to his rescue and made his father, Prithviraj Kapoor, reason with him.

The only Indian actor to receive Pakistan’s highest civilian award, Nishan-e-Imtiaz in 1998, Dilip Kumar was later pressurised to return the honour during the 1999 Kargil war by then coalition government of Shiv Sena in Maharashtra.

He had thought that the protests outside his house would die down soon, but when they didn’t, he met then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who intervened.

“There’s no doubt about Dilip’s patriotism and commitment to the nation. He has proved that time and again during his film career. He has received the award at an individual level. It’s his will to keep it or return it. No one can pressurise him,” Vajpayee had said.

It was revealed later that in a letter that Dilip Kumar wrote to arrange a meeting with Vajpayee, he mentioned that if returning the award was in the best interests of the nation, he would gladly do so.

Former Foreign Minister of Pakistan, Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri described Dilip as the “one who could bring India and Pakistan together” in his book titled “Neither a Hawk nor a Dove”.

Dilip’s picture greeting Abdul Ghaffar Khan, the independence activist, advocate of Hindu-Muslim unity, who was against partition, on his visit to India at Meenambakkam Airport, Chennai, bears witness of him being the figure of peace throughout his life.         Source: TNS