Manoj Kumar | |
---|---|
Born | Harikrishan Goswami 24 July 1937 |
Nationality | Indian |
Other names | Bharat Kumar |
Occupations |
|
Years active | 1957–1999 |
Political party | Bharatiya Janata Party |
Spouse | Shashi Goswami |
Children | 2; including Kunal Goswami |
Relatives | Manish R Goswami (brother) |
Honours |
|
Manoj Kumar (born Harikrishan Goswami; 24 July 1937) is an Indian actor, film director, screenwriter, lyricist and editor who worked in Hindi cinema. He is known for acting and making films with patriotic themes, and has been given the nickname Bharat Kumar. [upper-alpha 1] He is the recipient of a National Film Award and seven Filmfare Awards, in varied categories. He was awarded Padma Shri in 1992 and Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2016 by the Government of India for his contribution to Indian cinema and arts.
Kumar was born into a Hindu Brahmin [1] family in Abbottabad, a town in the North-West Frontier Province, British India (present-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan). [2] His birth name is Harikrishan Giri Goswami. When he was 10, his family migrated from Jandiala Sher Khan to Delhi due to the Partition. [3] Kumar pursued a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hindu College before trying his luck in films. When he was young, he admired actors Dilip Kumar, Ashok Kumar and Kamini Kaushal and decided to name himself Manoj Kumar, after Dilip Kumar's character in Shabnam . [2] [4]
After making a little-noticed début in Fashion (1957), followed by forgettable roles in films like Sahara (1958), Chand (1959) and Honeymoon (1960), he landed his first leading role in Kaanch Ki Gudiya (1961). Piya Milan Ki Aas (1961), Suhag Sindoor (1961), Reshmi Roomal (1961) followed, but the majority of these sank without a trace. The first success came in 1962 with Vijay Bhatt's Hariyali Aur Rasta opposite Mala Sinha. The film was a critical and commercial hit. [5] This was followed by - Shaadi (1962), Dr. Vidya (1962) and Grahasti (1963), all of which were moderately successful at the box office. [6]
His breakthrough came with Raj Khosla's mystery thriller Woh Kaun Thi? in 1964. [7] The film emerged a superhit, which was attributed to its watertight screenplay and melodious songs, such as "Lag Jaa Gale" and "Naina Barse Rimjhim", both solos by Lata Mangeshkar. [8]
1965 was a big year for Kumar, as it initiated his rise to stardom. [9] His first release was patriotic drama Shaheed , based on the life of Bhagat Singh, the Independence revolutionary. It received highly positive responses from critics as well as the then-Prime Minister of India Lal Bahadur Shastri, and it was a hit at the box office. [10] This was followed by romantic drama Himalay Ki God Mein , [11] a blockbuster which made him a bankable star. [9] In the month of December, Kumar scored another major hit with the mystery thriller Gumnaam . [12] The success streak continued in 1966, when he reunited with Khosla for Do Badan alongside Asha Parekh. This film was remembered for Khosla's direction, Kumar's performance, and songs written by the lyricist Shakeel Badayuni (including "Raha Gardishon Mein", sung by Mohammed Rafi, and "Lo Aa Gayi Unki Yaad", a solo by Lata Mangeshkar). [13] He delivered another hit that year in Shakti Samanta's Sawan Ki Ghata , performing opposite Sharmila Tagore. [14]
After the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri asked him to create a film based on the popular slogan Jai Jawan Jai Kissan ("Hail the soldier, hail the farmer"). [2] [10] The result was his directorial debut, the 1967 patriotic drama Upkar . [15] The film topped the box office chart that year, and emerged as an All Time Blockbuster. [16] Upkar received critical acclaim and its music was also highly successful, especially "Mere Desh Ki Dharti," which is played during Republic Day and the Independence Day of India. Upkar won him the National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film as well as his first Filmfare Best Director Award. [17] [18] His next release, Patthar Ke Sanam again went on to become a major commercial success, but Anita opposite Sadhana flopped. [19] In 1968, he co-starred alongside Raaj Kumar and Waheeda Rehman in Neel Kamal . [20] The same year, he reunited with Rehman for Aadmi , which also had Dilip Kumar in the lead. [21] Neel Kamal proved a superhit at the box office, becoming the third highest-grossing film of 1968. [22] Aadmi also did reasonable business, and was declared a semi-hit by the end of its run. [23] The year 1969 saw the rise of Rajesh Khanna, who stormed the nation with the historic blockbuster Aradhana . [24] His rise led to a decline in the stardom of actors like Rajendra Kumar, Shammi Kapoor and Sunil Dutt. [25] During this period, Dharmendra and Kumar were the only actors who remained unaffected by Rajesh Khanna Mania, and kept delivering huge hits. Kumar's only release of 1969 was Sajan co-starring Parekh. [26] The film was a hit, and ranked tenth among the highest-grossing films of that year. [27]
He returned to patriotic themes in 1970 with Purab Aur Paschim , which juxtaposed life in the East and West. It proved to be a mega blockbuster both in India and overseas. [28] In the United Kingdom, the film was released in 1971 and ran for over 50 weeks in London. It grossed £285,000 in the UK, equivalent to ₹2.5 million (US$332,252.41). It broke the UK box office record of another huge blockbuster Do Raaste , which had released in the UK a year earlier. Purab Aur Paschim held the UK record for 23 years, until it was finally broken by Hum Aapke Hain Kaun in 1994. [29] His other releases of 1970 were Yaadgaar , Pehchan and Mera Naam Joker . [30] [31] While Yaadgaar was a box office failure, Pehchan (opposite Babita) proved a commercial success, and Raj Kapoor's Mera Naam Joker (in which he had a supporting role) flopped at the time of release, but gained cult status with the passage of time and the growing visibility of Indian content in world cinema. [32] [33] After delivering a decent success with Balidaan in 1971, the following year, he starred in Sohanlal Kanwar's Be-Imaan and directed and starred in Shor . [34] [35] The latter, opposite Nanda, was not a huge box office success, but received critical acclaim. It featured the memorable song Ek Pyar Ka Nagma Hai, a duet by Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh, which was composed by Laxmikant-Pyarelal and written by Santosh Anand. [36] Kumar won his first and only Filmfare Award for Best Actor for his performance in Be-Imaan, as well as a Filmfare Award for Best Editing for Shor. [37]
Kumar's peak came in the mid-1970s, when he delivered three huge blockbusters in a row. [38] This started with the social drama Roti Kapada Aur Makaan , which he also directed. In addition to Kumar, the film starred Shashi Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan, Zeenat Aman and Moushmi Chatterjee. [39] Released on 18 October 1974, it emerged as the biggest hit of the year and was given the verdict of All Time Blockbuster by the end of its run. [40] In 1975, Kumar reunited with Sohanlal Kanwar for Sanyasi which opened to excellent audience response, eventually emerging a blockbuster and taking 3rd spot at the box office. [41] For his portrayal of a religious minded young man in the film, Kumar received his fourth and final nomination in the Filmfare Award for Best Actor category. [42] With the action crime film Dus Numbri in 1976, he completed his hat-trick of blockbusters. [43]
In 1977, he had two releases with Shirdi Ke Sai Baba and Amaanat . Neither film did well at the box office. After a year-long break, he starred in the hit Punjabi film Jat Punjabi. In 1981, Kumar directed and starred in historical drama Kranti alongside Dilip Kumar, Hema Malini, Shashi Kapoor, Parveen Babi and Shatrughan Sinha. [44] Kranti went on to become the biggest patriotic hit of all time, topping the box office chart in 1981. [45] It was the most successful film of the 1980s, and Kumar's third All Time Blockbuster after Upkar and Roti Kapada Aur Makaan. [46] The craze of the film was such that in places like Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana there were shops selling Kranti T shirts, jackets, vests and even underwear. The year 1981 was a big one for the industry which saw some huge blockbusters like Naseeb , Laawaris , Ek Duje Ke Liye , Love Story and Meri Aawaz Suno and many other hits, but Kranti stood apart and top of the pile. [47] It also proved to be the last notable successful Hindi film of Kumar's career. [48]
After Kranti in 1981, Kumar's career began to decline, and films he starred in such as Kalyug Aur Ramayan (1987), Santosh (1989) and Clerk (1989) all flopped at the box office. [49] He quit acting after his appearance in the 1995 film Maidan-E-Jung . [50] He directed his son, Kunal Goswami, in the 1999 film Jai Hind, which had a patriotic theme. The film was a box office failure and the last film Kumar worked on. [51]
He was awarded the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999, for a career spanning over 40 years. [52] He consistently worked with the actors Prem Nath, Pran, Prem Chopra, Kamini Kaushal and Hema Malini in his career. His closest friends from the industry included Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Mukesh, Mahendra Kapoor, Dharmendra, Rajendra Kumar and Shashi Kapoor. [53] [54] [55]
His trademark movement of a hand covering the face was very popular, and continues to be the butt of jokes of latter day stand-up comedians. In 2007, the Shah Rukh Khan film Om Shanti Om featured the lead character pretending to be Manoj Kumar, so as to sneak into a movie premiere, by holding his hand over his face. Kumar filed a lawsuit which was settled out of court. [56]
Like many other Bollywood stars, Kumar decided to enter politics following his retirement. Before the 2004 general election in India, he officially joined Bharatiya Janta Party. [57]
Year | Film | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1957 | Fashion | N/A | |
1958 | Sahara | Shyam | |
Panchayat | Gopal | ||
1959 | Chand | Gokul | |
1960 | Honeymoon | Kishore | |
1961 | Kaanch Ki Gudiya | Raju | |
Piya Milan Ki Aas | Maji | ||
Suhag Sindoor | Ratan | ||
Reshmi Rumal | Shyam | ||
1962 | Hariyali Aur Rasta | Shankar | |
Maa Beta | Keshav | ||
Banarsi Thug | Shyam | ||
Shaadi | Raja | ||
Apna Banake Dekho | |||
Dr. Vidya | Ratan Chowdhury | ||
Naqli Nawab | Yusuf | ||
1963 | Grahasti | Mohan | |
Ghar Basake Dekho | Kumar | ||
1964 | Apne Huye Paraye | Dr. Shankar | |
Woh Kaun Thi? | Dr. Anand | ||
Phoolon Ki Sej | Nirmal Verma | ||
1965 | Shaheed | Bhagat Singh | |
Bedaag | Rajesh | ||
Himalay Ki God Mein | Dr. Sunil Mehra | ||
Gumnaam | C.I.D. Inspector Anand | ||
Poonam Ki Raat | Prakash Gupta | ||
1966 | Picnic | Vinod | |
Do Badan | Vikas | ||
Sawan Ki Ghata | Gopal | ||
1967 | Patthar Ke Sanam | Rajesh | |
Anita | Neeraj | ||
Upkar | Bharat | ||
1968 | Neel Kamal | Ram | |
Aadmi | Dr. Shekhar | ||
1969 | Sajan | Ashok Saxena | |
1970 | Purab Aur Paschim | Bharat | |
Yaadgaar | Bhanu | ||
Pehchan | Gangaram "Ganga" Ramkishan | ||
Mera Naam Joker | David Francis | ||
1971 | Balidaan | Raja | |
1972 | Shor | Shankar | |
Be-Imaan | Mohan | ||
1974 | Roti Kapda Aur Makaan | Bharat | |
1975 | Sanyasi | Ram Rai | |
1976 | Dus Numbri | Arjun | |
1977 | Shirdi Ke Sai Baba | Scientist | |
Amaanat | Deepak | ||
1979 | Jat Punjabi | Jat Punjabi | |
1981 | Kranti | Bharat | |
1983 | Mujhe Insaaf Chahiye | Himself | Guest appearance |
1987 | Kalyug Aur Ramayan | Pawan Putra Shri Hanuman | |
1989 | Santosh | Santosh Singh | |
Clerk | Bharat | ||
1991 | Deshwasi | Sangram Singh | |
1995 | Maidan-E-Jung | Master Dinanath | |
Year | Honor | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|
1992 | Padma Shri | Honored | [58] |
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1968 | Second Best Feature Film | Upkaar | Won | [59] |
2016 | Dadasaheb Phalke Award | Honored | [60] |
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2008 | Kishore Kumar Award | Honored | [61] | |
2010 | Raj Kapoor Award | Honored | [62] |
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1968 | Best Film | Upkaar | Won | [63] |
Best Director | Won | |||
Best Story | Won | |||
Best Dialogue | Won | |||
Best Actor | Nominated | |||
1969 | Best Supporting Actor | Aadmi | Nominated | |
1972 | Best Actor | Be-Imaan | Won | |
Best Director | Shor | Nominated | [64] | |
Best Story | Nominated | |||
Best Editing | Won | |||
1975 | Best Film | Roti Kapda Aur Makaan | Nominated | [65] |
Best Director | Won | |||
Best Story | Nominated | |||
Best Actor | Nominated | |||
1976 | Sanyasi | Nominated | [66] | |
1999 | Lifetime Achievement Award | Honored | [52] |
Year | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1968 | Best Dialogue | Upkaar | Won | [67] |
Kumar is regarded as one of the greatest actors of Indian cinema. [79] He is noted for his acting, style and patriotic films. [80] [81] One of the most successful actors of 1960s and 1970s, Kumar appeared in Box Office India 's "Top Actors" list eight times, (1967-1969, 1972–1976). [9] In 2022, he was placed in Outlook India 's "75 Best Bollywood Actors" list. [82]
Shashi Kapoor was an Indian actor and film producer who is best known for his works in Hindi films. A recipient of several accolades, including four National Film Awards and two Filmfare Awards, he also featured in a number of English-language international films, particularly films produced by Merchant Ivory. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 2011, and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, in 2014, for his contribution to Indian cinema.
Ashok Kumar, was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema. He was considered the first big star of Hindi cinema as well as the first lead actor to play an anti-hero. He also became the first star to reinvent himself, enjoying a long and hugely successful career as a character actor. He was a member of the cinematic Ganguly family. He was honoured in 1988 with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest national award for cinema artists, by the Government of India. He also received the Padma Bhushan in 1999 for his contributions to Indian cinema.
Dilip Kumar was an Indian actor who worked in Hindi cinema. Credited with pioneering method acting in cinema, after Motilal, he dominated the Indian cinema from late 1940s throughout 60s, being referred to as Abhinay Samrat. Kumar holds the record for most wins for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor and was also the inaugural recipient of the award. He holds the most dominant box-office record for a star in Hindi cinema with over 80% box-office successes and several long-standing gross records.
Dharmendra Kewal Krishan Deol is an Indian actor, producer, and politician who is primarily known for his work in Hindi films. Nicknamed the "He-Man" of Bollywood, Dharmendra is widely regarded to be amongst the most handsome Indian actors of his time. In 2012, he received the Padma Bhushan, India's third highest civilian honour, from the Government of India. Dharmendra has worked in over 300 films in a career spanning over six decades. He is considered one of the most successful actors in the history of Hindi cinema.
Mahendra Kapoor was an Indian playback singer. In a long career spanning decades, his repertoire included popular songs such as Chalo ekbaar phir se Ajnabi ban jayen hum dono (Gumrah) and Neele Gagan ke tale (Hamraaz). His name however became most closely associated with patriotic songs including Mere Desh Ki Dharti in Manoj Kumar's film Upkaar. He considered Mohammad Rafi as his Guru. In 1972, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India. He lent his voice to actor Manoj Kumar in most of his films and had a lengthy association with director-producer Baldev Raj Chopra.
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Alda Sinha, better known by her stage name Mala Sinha, is a former Indian actress who has worked in Hindi, Bengali and Nepali films. Initially starting her career with regional cinema, she went on to become a top leading actress in Hindi Cinema in the late 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s. In a career spanning four decades, Mala Sinha rose to prominence with films like Guru Dutt's Pyaasa (1957) and Yash Chopra's Dhool Ka Phool (1959). Later, she starred in over hundred film productions including Phir Subah Hogi (1958), Hariyali Aur Rasta, Anpadh, Dil Tera Deewana (1962), Gumrah, Bahurani, Himalay Ki God Mein (1965), Aasra (1966), Ankhen, Do Kaliyan, Maryada (1971). She was known as the "daring diva" and "torch bearer of women's cinema" for essaying strong female centric and unconventional roles in a range of movies considered ahead of their times. Having received multiple awards and nominations, she was given the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 2018.
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Feroz Khan, born Zulfiqar Ali Shah Khan, was an Indian actor, film editor, producer, and director best known for his work in Indian cinema. He appeared in over 60 films throughout his career and became one of Bollywood's popular style icons. Khan is known for his roles in successful Hindi films, such as Arzoo (1965), Aurat (1967), Safar (1970), Mela (1971), Apradh (1972), Khotte Sikkay (1974), Kala Sona (1975), Dharmatma (1975), Nagin (1976), Qurbani (1980), Janbaaz (1986) and Welcome (2007).
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Purab Aur Pachhim is a 1970 Indian Hindi-language drama film. The movie was produced and directed by Manoj Kumar, and it stars Manoj Kumar, Saira Banu, Ashok Kumar, Pran and Prem Chopra in the lead roles. The music is by Kalyanji Anandji. The 2007 film Namastey London is inspired from this film. This was the second film by Manoj Kumar where he stars as Bharat and one of his four films on patriotism
Upkar (transl. Favour) is a 1967 Indian Hindi film directed by Manoj Kumar. The film held the top spot at the box office in 1967 and was the highest-grossing movie of the year. It was Manoj Kumar's directorial debut film. Upkar was highly acclaimed, winning Filmfare Awards awards for best film, best director, best story, best dialog, and best lyrics.
Raajneeti (transl. Politics) is a 2010 Indian Hindi-language political thriller film co-written, directed and produced by Prakash Jha, with a screenplay by Anjum Rajabali and Prakash Jha. Depicting an archetypal conflict between rival political families and parties, based on Mahabharata, the film starred an ensemble cast of Ajay Devgn, Nana Patekar, Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Arjun Rampal, Manoj Bajpayee, Sarah Thompson and Naseeruddin Shah. It was originally produced by Prakash Jha Productions and distributed by UTV Motion Pictures and Walkwater Media.
The 15th Filmfare Awards were held in 1968, celebrating the best in Hindi cinema in 1967.
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