Page 30 - Pakistan Link - July 16, 2021

ENTERTAINMENT
P30 – PAKISTAN LINK – JULY 16, 2021 JULY 9, 2021 - PAKISTAN LINK
ENTERTAINMENT & LIFESTYLE

ilip Kumar, the last surviving member of the 50s star path of self-destruction like no other. Kumar personified sorrow and London helped raise huge amounts. Apart from this, for my
triumvirate that dominated Indian cinema during the through his long, drawn-out silences and subtle changes in ex- generation, Dilip Kumar was the greatest and most versatile ac-
mid of the twentieth century, passed away on Wednes- pression, with his character finding death at the bottom of a bottle tor.” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called Kumar “a cin-
Dday. He was 98. Along with actors Raj Kapoor and Dev or staring down the barrel of a gun in the hands of his lover. His ematic legend”. “He was blessed with unparalleled brilliance...
Anand, Kumar ruled the screen of independent India in its infan- self-sacrificing tragic hero defined an era of Indian masculinity, His passing away is a loss to our cultural world,” Modi tweeted.
cy, and his influence crossed the border into Pakistan with ease. one more concerned with morality over physical perfection. The actor, who was also a recipient of Pakistan’s highest
Born Muhammad Yusuf Khan in an undivided India in the Nehru’s hero civilian honour, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz, was graced with glowing
city of Peshawar in 1922, Kumar adopted his new name at the Kumar’s characters were the epitome of the Indian polit- tributes from all over the Indian and Pakistani film fraternity.
behest of Devika Rani, actor and founder of Bombay Talkies, ical climate at the time. His films such as Naya Daur, which Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar took to social media to share,
who discovered Kumar as he tended to his father’s fruit stall in deals with the impact of industrialisation and mechanisation on “To the world many others may be heroes. To us actors, he was
Bombay. Sooner than later, with no formal training in the perfor- the rural Indian labourer, attempts to find a middle-ground be- The Hero.” Actor Ajay Devgan tweeted that Kumar was an “in-
mance arts, Kumar brought method acting to Indian cinema; his tween Nehru’s romance with the modern and Gandhi’s staunch stitution, a timeless actor. Heartbroken,” with director Hansal
depth and range as an actor are in many ways unparalleled. traditionalism. Lord Meghnad Jagadishchandra Desai, author Mehta called him “the greatest”.
The Devdas actor immersed himself fully in his characters’ of the book Nehru’s Hero: Dilip Kumar in the Life of India, Anupam Kher shared an entire video to remember the
convoluted worlds, taking on their lives as his own, which more details how Naya Daur embodies Nehru’s economic plans times he spent with Kumar sahab on his Twitter. “There will
often than not met tragic ends. His much-publicised and unre- and his vision for rural development. Through his characters, always be a part of Dilip Kumar in every Indian actor,” he
quited romance with his Mughal-e-Azam co-star Madhubala, Kumar brought the everyday Indian to the forefront. Clad in a wrote. While Shahid Kapoor added, “We are nothing but ver-
who died at the age of 36 after a tumultuous relationship with the dhoti, his portrayals privileged the low-wage labourer. In the sions of Dilip Kumar.”
actor, added to Kumar’s tragic mystique. film, Kumar plays a tongawala in a village whose residents fear Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan tweeted, An insti-
King of tragedy losing their livelihoods to mechanisation. Man triumphs over tution has gone .. whenever the history of Indian Cinema will be
However, his forte went well beyond romance, with sever- machine, with a message of responsible industrialisation being written, it shall always be ‘before Dilip Kumar, and after Dilip
al of his hit films crossing over into the socio-political territory sent out to the scores of viewers. Kumar’. My duas for peace of his soul and the strength to the
(always with a romantic subplot, of course). Films such as Naya A world without Dilip family to bear this loss.
Daur and Ganga Jamuna embodied the Nehruvian politics of the As news of the veteran actor’s demise broke out, tributes Veteran Pakistani actor Simi Raheel shared on her Instagram,
time, with commentators going as far as calling Kumar “Nehru’s poured in from across India and Pakistan, united in their grief “Dilip Kumar or Yusuf Khan was the first most powerful Khan
hero”. He represented the new marriage of Indian politics and over the loss of a legend. Prime Minister Imran Khan sent out of Indian cinema. I was a little girl when I went with my grand-
cinema, where film was to be the vehicle of more than just en- a Tweet in memory of Kumar. He wrote, “Saddened to learn of mother to a cinema in Lahore to watch Devdas. That was my first
tertainment. Christened the ‘King of Tragedy’, Kumar perfectly Dilip Kumar’s passing,” the premier tweeted. “I can never forget introduction to Dilip Kumar. I remember being mesmerised by
embodied the fatalistic romantic ideals of early Indian cinema. his generosity in giving his time to help raise funds for SKMTH his looks, his presence and his voice. That was when I realised
Starring in romantic tragedies of Shaksperiean proportions such when the project launched. This is the most difficult time - to the magic of the silver screen. He was and will remain a giant, a
as Devdas, Deedar and Andaz, he played the lovelorn hero on the raise the first 10% of the funds and his appearance in Pakistan king of #Indiancinema . May Allah grant him Jannnat.
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