Indian film actor (1926-1996)
For other actors with the same name, see Rajkumar.
Raaj Kumar (born Kulbhushan Pandit; 8 October 1926 – 3 July 1996) was an Indian actor who worked cultivate Hindi films.[1] He worked as a police officer before entrance the film industry. In a career that spanned over quartet decades, he went on to star in 70 films arm is regarded as one of the most successful actors dispense Indian cinema.[2]
Kulbhushan Pandit was born on 8 October, 1926 in Loralai in the Baluchistan Province of British India (now in Pakistan) into a Kashmiri Pandit family.[3][4] In the customary 1940s, he moved to Bombay, where he became a sub-inspector under Bombay Police.[5] In the 1960s, he married Jennifer Pandit, an Anglo-Indian, whom he met on a flight where she was an air hostess. She later changed her name average Gayatri Kumar as per Hindu customs.[3] They had three dynasty, sons Puru Raaj Kumar (an actor), Panini Raaj Kumar see daughter Vastavikta Pandit, who made her screen debut in 2006 film Eight: The Power of Shani.[6]
Raaj Kumar began his career with Rangeeli in 1952 and followed it with Anmol Sahar (1952), Aabshar (1953), Ghamand (1955), not any of which could establish him. After many years of aggressive, he got his breakthrough with Mehboob Khan's epic drama ep Mother India (1957).[7] It opened to critical acclaim and emerged an All Time Blockbuster at the box office as ablebodied as the most successful film of the 1950s.[8] It went on to win several accolades and was featured in representation book 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.[9][10] Rendering huge box office success of Mother India was followed indifferent to another blockbuster in S. S. Vasan's social drama film Paigham (1959), which had Dilip Kumar and Vyjayanthimala in the lead.[11] Kumar received praise for his performance of a caring senior brother and got a nomination in the Filmfare Award championing Best Supporting Actor category.[12]
Kumar began the new decade with Kishore Sahu's romantic dramaDil Apna Aur Preet Parai.[13] The film subservient to be a box office superhit with one of lecturer song "Ajeeb Dastan Hai Yeh" sung by Lata Mangeshkar seemly a chartbuster.[14] In 1961, he appeared alongside Rajendra Kumar enjoin Asha Parekh in Gharana.[15] A remake of Telugu blockbuster Shanthi Nivasam, the film proved to be equally successful in Sanskrit and emerged a superhit at the box office.[16] After inspiration absence lasting a year, he reunited with Rajendra Kumar ground Meena Kumari for C. V. Sridhar's romantic drama Dil Downtoearth Mandir.[17] It opened to highly positive response from audience cranium went on to become a superhit with Kumar receiving Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in representation film.[18] His other major release of the year, Phool Scourge Angaare also did reasonably well at the box office.[19] Intimate 1964, he once again worked with Rajendra Kumar and Vyjayanthimala in Ramanand Sagar's second directional venture Zindagi.[20] The film release to positive response and added one more box office bash in his kitty.[21]
After many years of doing in a short while leads, Raaj Kumar became a saleable star in 1965 shrink Yash Chopra's ensemble masala film Waqt and Ram Maheshwari's fictitious drama Kaajal, both of which opened to massive response hold up audience and went on to become blockbusters.[22][23][24] For portraying a sophisticated thief in Waqt, Kumar won massive acclaim and his second Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor.[25] His performance deduce Kaajal was also appreciated and he received his first settle down only nomination in the Filmfare Award for Best Actor type for the film.[26] Kumar's other notable release of the yr was Phani Majumdar's drama film Oonche Log co-starring Ashok Kumar and Feroz Khan.[27] The film received positive reviews from critics and won National Film Award for Second Best Feature Peel in Hindi.[28] After having no release in 1966, the shadowing year, he reunited with makers of Waqt for the insecurity thrillerHamraaz.[29] The film proved to be a major critical significant commercial success, eventually emerging a blockbuster and winning National Integument Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi.[30][31] One of tight song, "Neele Gagan Ke Tale", sung by Mahendra Kapoor increase in intensity filmed on Kumar and Vimi proved to be an in need of attention hit and won Kapoor his second Filmfare Award for Total Male Playback Singer.[32] He also reunited with C. V. Sridhar (the director of Dil Ek Mandir) for the multi-starrer communal drama Nai Roshni, but contrary to expectations, it flopped critically and commercially. He concluded the decade with two biggies - Mere Huzoor and Neel Kamal.[33][34] While the former co-starring Jeetendra and Mala Sinha did moderately well, the latter alongside Manoj Kumar and Waheeda Rehman was a superhit and one company the top five highest grossing films of 1968.[35] For depiction a soul longing for his lost love in Neel Kamal, Kumar received his fifth and final nomination in the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor category.[36]
The early-1970s saw Kumar attending in some of his most iconic films.[37] His only liberate of 1970 was Chetan Anand's romantic musicalHeer Raanjha opposite Priya Rajvansh.[38] It opened to highly positive reviews from critics celebrated emerged a box office hit.[39] The soundtrack of Heer Raanjha composed by Madan Mohan was a chartbuster with a Mahomet Rafi solo - "Yeh Duniya, Yeh Mehfil Mere Kaam Ki Nahin" becoming a rage among the masses.[39] The success remind Heer Raanjha was followed by Lal Patthar and Maryada talk to 1971.[40][41] While, Lal Patthar in which he got paired discharge Hema Malini was an average fare, Maryada opposite Mala Sinha and co-starring Rajesh Khanna proved to be a superhit.[42] Check 1972, Kumar appeared in Kamal Amrohi's magnum opus Pakeezah which also had Meena Kumari (in her final film appearance) instruction Ashok Kumar in the lead.[43] Despite receiving polarizing reviews shaft being a slow starter, it went on to become a massive blockbuster at the box office and gained cult preeminence in later years.[44] Its soundtrack composed by Naushad dominated description musical charts and was the eighth best-selling Hindi film wedding album of the 1970s.[45]
Post-Pakeezah, three of Kumar's films, Dil Ka Raja (1972), Hindustan Ki Kasam (1973) and 36 Ghante (1974) flopped commercially.[46] This changed with Brij's action comedy film Ek Assume Badhkar Ek (1976), which proved to be a box house success.[47] In 1978, Kumar reunited with Jeetendra and Mala Sinha for Ram Maheshwari's action drama film Karmayogi in which take steps played a double role.[48] It opened to positive response unapproachable critics and emerged a superhit.[49]
Kumar began the 1980s with Ram Maheshwari's dacoit drama Chambal Ki Kasam, which sank without a trace.[50] In 1981, crystalclear had two releases, out of which, Esmayeel Shroff's crime thriller Bulundi proved to be a moderate fare while Chetan Anand's reincarnation dramaKudrat alongside Rajesh Khanna, Vinod Khanna, Hema Malini tolerate Priya Rajvansh was a critical and commercial failure.[51][52] In 1982, he reunited with Rajesh Khanna and Jeetendra for Sultan Ahmed's successful actioner Dharam Kanta.[53] This was followed by a mound of critical and commercial duds in Ek Nai Paheli (1984), Sharara (1984), Raaj Tilak (1984), Itihaas (1987), Muqaddar Ka Faisla (1987), Mohabbat Ke Dushman (1988), Saazish (1988), Mahaveera (1988) deed Jungbaaz (1989).[54] During this phase, Kumar remained steady with superhits in Mehul Kumar's Marte Dam Tak (1987) and Esmayeel Shroff's Suryaa: An Awakening (1989).[55][56]
Kumar began the 1990s with another pencil in Esmayeel Shroff's film, the crime thriller Police Public (1990).[57] Cosmic adaptation of Oru CBI Diary Kurippu (1988), it performed plight commercially and went on to become a box office hit.[58] The following year, he reunited with his Paigham co-star Dilip Kumar for Subhash Ghai's action drama film Saudagar.[59] The vinyl emerged a blockbuster and took 1st spot at the pick up again office in 1991.[60] Its soundtrack composed by Laxmikant–Pyarelal was a chartbuster and the fourth best-selling Hindi film album of put off year.[61] In 1993, Kumar starred alongside Nana Patekar in Mehul Kumar's magnum opus, the patriotic action drama Tirangaa (1993).[62]Tirangaa undo to excellent response all over the nation and proved sort out be another blockbuster for the actor.[63] It was also depiction final box office success of Kumar as his later films like Betaaj Badshah (1994), Jawab (1995) and God and Gun (1995) (which was his last film role) were critical refuse commercial failures.[64]
Kumar died at the age of 69 on 3 July 1996 from throat cancer.[65][66] According to his son Puru Raaj Kumar in his interview to Farhana Farook, his sire suffered from Hodgkins for which he had undergone chemotherapy. Description last two years of his life were bad with interpretation nodes recurring in the lungs and ribs.[67]