Dilip Kumar

Biography

Dilip Kumar (born Mohammed Yusuf Khan; 11 December 1922 – 7 July 2021) was an Indian actor who worked in Hindi cinema. Credited with pioneering method acting in cinema, after Motilal, he dominated Indian cinema from the late 1940s through the 60s, being referred to as Abhinay Samrat (Hindi for "Emperor of Acting"). 

Kumar holds the record for most wins of the Filmfare Award for Best Actor (eight, which was later equaled by Shah Rukh Khan) and was also the inaugural recipient of the award. He holds the most dominant box-office record for a star (male or female) in Hindi cinema with over 80% box-office success and several long-standing gross records.

In a career spanning over five decades, Kumar worked in less than 60 films in a variety of roles. He debuted as an actor in the film Jwar Bhata (1944), produced by Bombay Talkies. Following a series of unsuccessful ventures, he had his first box office hit in Jugnu (1947). 

Kumar found further success with the romantic drama Andaz (1949), the swashbuckling Aan (1952), the social drama Daag (1952), the actioner Insaniyat (1955), the comical Azaad (1955), the romantic social Naya Daur (1957), the noir mystery Madhumati (1958), the social drama Paigham (1959), the action-adventure Kohinoor (1960), the epic historical Mughal-E-Azam (1960), the crime drama Gunga Jumna (1961), and the comedy-drama Ram Aur Shyam (1967). 

All three Andaz, Aan, and Naya Daur briefly became the highest-grossing Indian films up to that point, a feat later achieved by Mughal-e-Azam, which sustained the record for 15 years.

Kumar died at Hinduja Hospital, Mumbai, on 7 July 2021 at 7:30 am, aged 98, after a prolonged illness. He had been suffering from several age-related issues and was diagnosed with pleural effusion. The Government of Maharashtra approved his burial with state honors under COVID-19 restrictions at the Juhu Muslim Cemetery that same day.