As we know, Bollywood’s legendary and iconic figure Dilip Kumar passed away at the age of 98. He is known as a method actor and a wonderful person to everyone who watches Hindi films. But the manner in which he made his entry to films is a movie story in itself. It is very cinematic and filled with drama.
Prolific actress Devika Rani who is also the chairperson of Bombay Talkies production company was the one to find Dilip Kumar. While she was travelling on the road, she witnessed a fruits vendor and thought that he had all the qualities of a hero. He was brought to the office and was offered the lead role and the fruit vendor’s name is Mohammed Yusuf Khan which later changed to Dilip Kumar. Since people need a good name that can register easily in their minds, he was named Dilip Kumar as Ashok Kumar was the biggest superstar of that time. After agreeing to renaming himself as Dilip Kumar, his life turned around and there was no looking back for him.
Dilip Kumar aka Mohammed Yusuf Khan was born in Peshawar of Pakistan before the partition. His father used to sell fruits and they had a few lands in Mumbai which is why they shifted here. After growing up Yusuf Khan did the same thing that his father did which is selling fruits before Devika Rani discovered him from the streets and turned him into a legend. Despite having an interest in films, he would’ve never thought that may become an actor considering his family situation.
Dilip Kumar made full use of this opportunity and made himself a star. He made his debut with ‘Jwar Bhata’ in 1944 and surprisingly, it was an utter flop. Critics thrashed this movie as well as Dilip Kumar’s acting. It made him adamant and his confidence in himself made him into a superstar. Dilip Kumar has an interesting personal life. Despite having relations with some heroines, none of them led to married. He was reportedly in a relation with Kamini Kaushal but it did not lead to marriage and many of us know his love episode with Madhu Bala which failed. The same thing happened with Vijayanthimala. He finally got married to Saira Bano who is 22 years younger than him. He got married at the age of 44 and never had children. He got the prestigious Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan awards from the Indian government as well as Dadasaheb Phalke award. He breathed his last in his sleep at the age of 98 and put an end to his memorable journey on this planet.