Dilip Kumar Was Unparalleled
By A Special Correspondent
First publised on 2021-07-07 06:57:31
About the Author
Legendary actor Dilip Kumar, the first actor in India who adopted Method acting, is no more. He died in Mumbai at 98 years of age after prolonged illness. He is survived by his wife Saira Banu. The couple did not have any children.
Dilip Kumar is known to have infused life in whatever characters he played on screen. For those who are now in their middle age, they will remember his power packed performance in the film Shakti where he played a stern policeman father to a wayward son played by Amitabh Bachchan. They might also remember him locking horns with Raj Kumar in Saudagar. Or in Kranti, Vidhaata, Karma and Mashaal.
But Dilip saab, as he was universally called in the Mumbai film industry, is best remembered for his earlier films like Naya Daur, Yahudi, Sagina Mahato, Andaz, Kohinoor, Ganga Jamuna, Arzoo, Deedar, Devdas, Mughal-e-Azam, Madhumati, Gopi, Bairaag and Ram Aur Shyam. The list is endless. He won eight Filmfare awards and the Dada Sahab Falke award. A Padma Vibhusan, he also received Nishan-e-Imitiaz, the highest civilian honour of Pakistan.
He was called the "tragedy king" for portraying the roles of a star crossed lover in many films and formed a triumvirate with Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand. They ruled the box office in the fifties and the sixties. Each had his own distinctive style and fan following and gave many hit films. But Dilip Kumar stood out for bringing realism to the screen.
Amitabh Bachchan, who said that "an institution has gone" on Dilip Kumar's death, summed up his importance in the film industry well in a single line. He said that whenever the history of Indian cinema is written, it will always be "before Dilip Kumar and after Dilip Kumar".
