TNI Bureau: Veteran actor Dilip Kumar has turned 90 today. Millions of his fans, well wishers and friends wished him over phone and some posted their best wishes on micro-blogging site Twitter. The yesteryear actor, who is known as ‘Tragedy King’ of Hindi Cinema, does not believe in stardom even though he has received maximum of awards for his contribution to cinema.
Born on December 11, 1922, in a Hindko-speaking Peshawari family in Pakistan, the actor debuted in the movie ‘Jwar Bhata’ in 1944. His original name is Muhammad Yousuf Khan, but he resides in everyone’s heart as Dilip Kumar. He was quite choosy about the script of the film and acted in only 60 films. The characters he had been given will be remembered forever and ever.
The film Devdas might have been made in 11 different versions so far, but whenever the film is discussed, only Dilip Kumar’s Devdas will first come to our mind. The unique acting skill he has can never be compared with anyone. He has been described as “the ultimate method actor” by Satyajit Ray.
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Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has described Dilip Kumar as the greatest actor ever. He is the first actor to receive a Filmfare Best Actor Award in 1954. He was honoured with the Padma Bhushan award in 1991 and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994 for his contributions to Hindi cinema. He was also nominated to Rajya Sabha.
Dilip Kumar is the second Indian to receive the Nishan-e-Imtiaz, Pakistan’s highest civilian award in 1998. 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. He was also honoured with CNN-IBN Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009. His contribution to Indian cinema is unforgettable. He is known as Tregdy King for his performances in the films like Jugnu (1947), Mela (1948), Andaz (1949), Deedar (1951), Devdas (1955), Yahudi (1958) and Madhumati (1958).
Later, he switched over to act in light films such as Aan (1952), Azaad (1955) and Kohinoor (1960). His character Salim in the historical film Mughal-e-Azam in 1960 shows that he is a great actor having blessed with unique acting skill.
Dilip Kumar has acted with many beautiful actresses, but he was allegedly closely connected with Vyjayanthimala the most. However, putting all the rumours and speculations into rest, he married actress Saira Banu in year 1966.