Dilip Kumar( Born on 11th Dec 1922) is one of the greatest and most iconic Indian film actors. Acclaimed throughout his career span of 54 years. His performances have been regarded as the epitome of emoting in Indian Cinema. He was the first actor to receive a Filmfare Best Actor Award and holds the record for most numbers of Filmfare Awards won for that category.
Though he has done all kinds of films and a wide variety of roles. In this blog, I have selected his Ten best performances starting from his first film in 1944 to the last film in 1988.
Andaz (1949)
The film stars Dilip Kumar, Nargis and Raj Kapoor in a love triangle. It was the first blockbuster film of Dilip Kumar. It is to date regarded as the mother of all triangles of the Hindi Cinema. Dilip Kumar who played Dilip in this film continued his tragedian onslaughts and reigned supreme as the bitter suitor whose love goes unrequited.
Deedar 1951
It is a story of unfulfilled love, where the hero's childhood love is separated from him due to class inequalities. It is one of the noted tragedies made in the early Hindi cinema. It became a popular film of the Golden era and further established Dilip Kumar as the "King of Tragedy. Dilip plays a blind singer who is cured by Ashok Kumar, a doctor. The twist in the tale is that they both love the same girl (Nargis). She’s his childhood sweetheart who doesn’t remember him, not even when he sings the song they crooned together as children. He vainly hopes that his restored vision would help restore her memories but sadly that doesn’t happen. Angered, he blinds himself in his grief.
Daag 1952
To earn money he makes and sells mud toys. Being the lone breadwinner of the family, he is unable to meet the needs. His debt starts rising higher and higher when he gets addicted to alcohol. He is attracted to Parvati (Nimmi), who also lives a poor lifestyle along with her step-brother In this film he played the role of a drunkard.
Devdas (1955)
Dilip Kumar played a man driven by unrequited love into being a drunkard to perfection. His eyes are hazy throughout the film and his silences are eloquent. He got so much under the skin of the character that it’s said he had to go to London and consult Harley Street psychiatrists to overcome depression.
Naya Daur (1957)
For this film, Kumar won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor for the third time in a row, being his fourth overall. Dilip played the rustic tangewala to perfection, flirting outrageously with his firebrand heroine Vyjayanthimala.
Madhumati (1958)
The film stars Dilip Kumar and Vyjayantimala in the lead roles. This Bimal Roy classic superbly employs the theme of reincarnation. You enjoy the film despite the clichés because of the atmosphere created by the director and excellent performances by both Dilip and Vyjayanthimala.
Mughal-E-Azam (1960)
Dilip Kumar plays the role of Salim wh0 falls in love with Anarkali. Salim pleads to marry Anarkali, but his father refuses and imprisons her. Despite her treatment, Anarkali refuses to reject Salim, as Akbar demands. Dilip Kumar, in keeping with the nature of a prince, was regally restrained and conveyed more through his eyes than others would with their facial expressions.
Gunga Jumna (1961)
The film stars Dilip Kumar, Vyjayanthimala and Nasir Khan (real-life brother of Dilip Kumar) in the lead rolesDililp Kumar was excellent as the rustic villager forced by circumstances to become a dacoit. Dilip Kumar's performance as Ganga is considered one of the finest acting performances in the history of Indian cinema.
Ram Aur Shyam (1967)
Dilip Kumar played a double role in the film. It was the story of twins separated at birth. Shyam grows up to be street smart man-about-town while Ram is a bumpkin much abused by his brother-in-law. Things are set right when the duo by chance exchange places.
Shakti (1982)
A father-son story, the role of the father played by Dilip Kumar and the son played by Amitabh Bachchan. The end scene where Amitabh is dying in Dilip’s lap remains a masterpiece. You can feel a father’s anguish, his anger, and the momentary joy that though dying, his son has finally reconciled their differences.
No comments:
Post a Comment