Dec 08, 1935 – Nov 24, 2025
There will be no Dharmendra again. Unlike many stars of the stellar screen, his compassion was an all-encompassing quality of his presence and since people realised he was an honest man driven by affection and humility, his legacy created a bond with the large number of countrymen.
If looks could kill, Shashi Kapoor would have been booked for ‘knocking out’ millions with his lethal charm. Alongside Dharmendra, he was the finest looking Indian actor and while both the large-hearted, Punjabi gentlemen could make cinegoers swoon by just their adorable smiles, it was Shashi who had a greater ability to carry the garb of a villager and a suave urbanite with finesse. Just as the golden sunshine of throat qualified Rafi Sahab as God’s own voice, Shashi’s endearing persona made him seem as nature’s symbol of eternal youth and it is not surprising that his gorgeous charm made him a darling of national and international cinema.
Inspiration is the greatest influence on any life and mine too is no exception. While I love umpteen number of great films from “Pyaasa”, “Mother India”, “Mughal-e-Azam” and “Gunga Jamuna” to “Dil Ek Mandir”, “Hum Dono”, “Dosti” and “Guide” that have deeply impacted my soul, it is Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s effervescent “Anand” which inspired me with profound truths of life. Undoubtedly, “Anand” had a great story, screenplay, lyrics and music besides commendable direction and acting, but it is the film’s deeply spiritual message of humanism that resides within me till date ever since I first saw it at Mayur cinema in Jaipur on 14th March 1971. I must admit that the film’s story as well as the peculiar circumstances of that moment helped me adopt “live-love-laugh” as my life mantras forever.
Daring to express the most complex human emotions, poets are God’s special creatures. Go down the lanes of history, words of rulers have died with them, but verses of poets remain alive as they communicate everlasting truths that most are unable to hear and imbibe….
Starring Dilip Kumar, Waheeda Rehman, Manoj Kumar, Simi Grewal, and Pran An earlier feature from my columns in Memory of the Great Thespian of Indian Cinema: Dilip Kumar Love triangles have dominated human lives since time immemorial, and obviously, Hindi films have been no exception….