As India woke up to the news of veteran actor Dilip Kumar’s demise on Wednesday, an entire era in Bollywood came to an abrupt end. In a career spanning nearly six decades, the star delivered many unforgettable movies and moments that were etched in the minds of the audience forever.
A philanthropist and former politician, Dilip Kumar has given us great films that will be remembered for both his stellar performances as well as anti-genre narratives.
He will always be credited for bringing realism to Hindi cinema, popularly known as ‘Tragedy King’ and ‘First Khan’. His smoldering intensity, and delivery full of deep pauses, as well as his ability to stay in the characters were a delight to the audience.
At a time when the acting was very melodramatic, Dilip Kumar acted less than other stars who overplayed. Be it ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ (1960), where Dilip Kumar as Salim gave audiences perhaps the greatest performance of Hindi cinema, or ‘Ram Aur Shyam’ (1967), where he played a double role and his Impressed everyone with impeccable comic timing. .
The list is endless, but we will try to remember the legend through his most iconic films.
- Devdas (1955)
The painful saga of love and romance, which was based on the novel of the same name by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, is considered to be one of the superstar’s masterpieces till date. Directed by Bimal Roy, the film starred Dilip Kumar as a staunch lover on a road to destruction at the hands of love and alcohol.
Kumar’s performance as a die-hard alcoholic meeting Paro one last time won the hearts of many. His measured portrayal of a lover drowning his sorrow in wine is admired even today.
- Mughal-e-Azam (1960)
The ultimate love story of Mughal prince Salim and a court dancer Anarkali was one of the saddest films of the great superstar. His epic portrayal of spoiled, self-indulgent and mad-in-love Rajkumar won the film several awards, including the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi in 1961.
Dilip Kumar added a whole new dimension to the love scenes he played with Madhubala, who plays Anarkali. This iconic piece of cinema was helmed by K Asif and produced by Shapoorji Pallonji.
- Babul (1960)
The musical drama that emerged as the second highest-grossing film of the year 1950 saw a tragic love triangle between his character the late dazzling diva Nargis and the late actor Munawwar Sultana. Kumar played the role of a postmaster coming from a wealthy family in this heartwarming film, which was directed by SU Sunny.
Although the film seems like a simple love story of Ashok, a village postmaster who wins the hearts of two completely opposite women, the film is an exploration of much deeper issues.
- Daag (1973)
The social drama ‘Daag’ produced and directed by Amiya Chakraborty won Kumar his first Filmfare Award in the lead category for Best Actor. The film sees a poverty-stricken and alcoholic Shankar (Kumar’s character) as a wealthy man who again heads down a path of self-destruction as the family of the love of his life decides to marry him elsewhere. .
However, the film ends on a good note, with Shankar marrying his girlfriend and then giving up alcohol.
- Naya Daur (1957)
Directed by BR Chopra, this romantic love triangle about two best friends falling in love with the same woman (Vyjayanthimala) was given a new lease of life due to a stellar performance by the Dilip Kumar-led lead pair, who made it a reality. Sold the film. With his incredible on-screen charisma.
He won his third consecutive Filmfare Best Actor Award for his stellar performance. The film was later also dubbed in Tamil as Pattalin Sabatham.
- Deedar (1951)
One of the famous tragedies that happened in early Indian cinema, ‘Deedar’ revolved around the unfulfilled love of Dilip Kumar’s character, who was estranged from him due to class inequalities. The film emerged as one of the most popular films of the Golden Age and established Kumar as the ‘King of Tragedies’.
The film starred Kumar along with Nargis and Nimmi and was based on the book ‘A Suitable Boy’. The film was remade in Tamil as Neegadha Ninaivu.
- Madhumati (1958)
This Bimal Roy film starring Vyjayanthimala and Pran with Kumar is yet another iconic film. Madhumati was a tale of reincarnation and terrifying haunted mansion, and perhaps for the first time, such tropes, instead of inviting chuckles, shook our spines. The film had a gothic noir feel.
- Ram and Shyam (1967)
Kumar played a double role of brothers Ram and Shyam in the film and gave the audience a glimpse of their comic timing. This was the first time he played a dual role, and in the process, gave a new genre to Hindi cinema.
Several more double-role films were churned out, which were based on the hilarious events of the brothers switching places. From Hema Malini’s ‘Sita Aur Geeta’ to Sridevi’s ‘Chalbaaz’, even Salman Khan’s ‘Judwaa’,
- Shakti (1982)
It was notable for being the first and only film to feature veteran actors Dilip Kumar and Amitabh Bachchan together on screen. The film is considered the best work of director Ramesh Sippy and is regarded as one of the greatest films in the history of cinema.
It is regarded as the moment in cinematic history where the past merged with the present and produced our finest actors for the future generation.
- Karma (1986)
In the film, Dilip Kumar plays a police officer whose family is killed by a villain, so he hires three convicts (Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff and Naseeruddin Shah) to take his revenge. This was the first time that Kumar was paired opposite Nutan.
The film reunited Subhash Ghai and Kumar after the success of his last film ‘Vidhata’ (1982).
Though the actor tried to act in different genres of films to eliminate the tag of ‘The Tragedy King’, his epic portrayal in these films has been etched in the hearts of his fans and hence he will always be remembered. Will go Tag.
Some of the other tragedy films of the superstar include ‘Tarana’, ‘Yahudi’ and ‘Kumati’.
He was last seen on the big screen in ‘Qila’ in 1998 and was awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1994 and Padma Vibhushan in 2015.
