Page 28 - Seniorstoday December 2022 Issue
P. 28
before the making of Naya Daur. and after Dilip Kumar, but the Tragedy
So many years into his career, Devdas King of the era defined heartbreak and
(1954), still a few years away, he acted made the character memorable.
in Daag (1952) playing a man who turns In a career spanning over half a century,
alcoholic when he cannot marry his he did fewer films than his contemporaries,
lady love. With this film he won the first because the kind of meticulousness he
Filmfare Award, the year it was instituted. brought to every character he played,
The film, a kind of poor man’s Devdas, meant he could not work in conveyer-belt
had the unforgettable song, Ae Mere Dil films and he chose to work mostly with
Kahin Aur Chal, sung by Talat Mahmood, filmmakers who were as exacting as he was,
who sung so many of the star’s songs that or at least let him interpret his part his way.
he came to be known as the voice of Dilip That approach did give rise to rumours that
Kumar. he was a backseat director, which may have
In Sangdil (1952) he almost loses his been partially true for a few of his films.
beloved due to his own mother’s conniving, He wrote stories for some films like Ganga
and like a few films before this, he is Jumna and Leader. His official film as
blinded in a fire. director, Kalinga, remained unreleased.
Finally, a break in the relentless grimness When he had done too many tragic roles,
of his roles, with Aan (1952), India’s first he was advised to do some lighthearted
technicolour film, and a reworking of films, or the constant brooding would affect
The Taming Of The Shrew. There was his mind. Azaad (1955) was the result, a
still the tragic romance Shikast (1953) to swashbuckling adventure, directed by S M
go plus Footpath (1953) and Amar (1954) Sriramulu Naidu and co-starring Meena
in which played, for a change, negative Kumari, in which he played a bandit.
characters—a blackmarketer and rapist Audiences saw the moping actor sing and
respectively, before becoming the poster laugh and liked this new avatar.
boy of doomed love in Devdas. The film SU Sunny’s Kohinoor (1960) was another
defined the romantic hero for the age—the one of the light films that Dilip Kumar
thwarted lover with the melancholic eyes, did to break his tragic screen image.
hair flopping over the troubled forehead, The costume drama, co-starring Meena
the anguished, booze-soaked voice. Kumari, had a fairytale look with princes,
Other actors have played Saratchandra princesses, palace intrigues and sword
Chattopadhyay’s tragic protagonist before fights. Dilip Kumar, reportedly learnt to
Aan brought his acting skills back on lighter track Movies like Naya Daur saw the actor truly acquire star
power
28
