Mehmood was the ‘King of Comedy’ undoubtedly.He was the only actor for whom the audience came to the theatre before the movie started. His huge fan following spoke of his dedication and talent. He was a superstar,his name helped producers sell their film in advance and his picture on the poster ensured that crowd turned up at the theatres.Many heroes of his time were insecure about sharing screen space with him. He was a star of Golden Era Of Bollywood.He was one of the few comedians who managed to deliver box-office hits with some films riding solely on his shoulders.His specialty was that he cracked a lot of impromptu jokes and that brought the audiences closer to him.As a Tribute on his13th Death anniversary I have selected 11 films that prove he was truly a genius.
Dil Tera Diwana - a 1962 Hindi comedy film. It stars Shammi Kapoor, Mala Sinha, Mehmood, Pran and Om Prakash. The music is by Shankar Jaikishan The music of the film was popular. Mehmood was given Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for this film.
Gumnaam- a 1965 Indian Bollywood suspense thriller film, directed by Raja Nawathe, and starring Manoj Kumar, Nanda, Pran, Helen and Mehmood The music for the film was composed by Shankar-Jaikishan.Remember the song Hum Kale Hain To Kya Hua Dilwale acted by Mehmood,he was nominared for Filmfare for this film.Mehmood played Butler in this film.According to film expert Rajesh Subramanian,a cold war prevailed between Mehmood and Manoj Kumar during the making. The latter even tried to influence the director so as to discard the song 'Hum kaale hain toh kya hua' (picturised on Mehmood) from the film. However, the song was retained and it proved to be a smash hit and one of the highlights of the film
Pyar Kiye Ja -a 1966 Hindi film directed by C. V. Sridhar starring Kishore Kumar, Shashi Kapoor, Mehmood, Om Prakash, Mumtaz, Kalpana and Rajasree. Mehmood was given Filmfare Award for this film.Mehmood acknowledged that Om Prakash, who played his father in the film,equally deserved the award and his fabulous reactions made the scenes more entertaining.
Love In Tokyo -a 1966 Hindi film that became a hit at the box office.The film stars Joy Mukherjee, Asha Parekh, Pran, Mehmood, Lalita Pawar, Asit Sen and Madan Puri. Music was by Shankar Jaikishan while Hasrat Jaipuri wrote the lyrics.Mehmood got Nomination for Best Performance in a Comic Role
Padosan- a 1968 hindi comedy film. Directed by Jyoti Swaroop. It was produced by Mehmood,The movie stars Sunil Dutt and Saira Banu in lead roles. Kishore Kumar, Mukri, Raj Kishore and Keshto Mukherjee played the supporting roles. Mehmood as the South Indian musician and rival to Sunil Dutt is among the highlights of the film. It was considered as one of the best comedy movies ever made in Hindi film history. Mehmood's portrayal of a south Indian music teacher was one of his all time best
Waris-a 1969 Hindi Action, Comedy film, produced by Vasu Menon on Vasu Studios banner and directed by Ramanna. Starring Jeetendra, Hema Malini, Prem Chopra, Mehmood, Aruna Irani, in the lead roles and music composed by R. D. Burman.He was awarded Filmfare award for this film.
Humjoli - a 1970 Bollywood drama film, produced by Prasan Kapoor on Tirupati Pictures banner and directed by T. R. Ramanna. The film stars Jeetendra, Leena Chandavarkar in the lead roles and music is composed by Laxmikant Pyarelal. Mehmood played a triple role in this movie as Prithviraj Kapoor,Raj Kapoor and Randhir kapoor.He got Filmfare Award for this film.
Paras -a 1971 Hindi film starring: Sanjeev Kumar, Raakhee, Mehmood, Farida Jalal, Shatrughan Sinha, Madan Puri.Mehmood playing as Munna Sarkar,was given Filmfare Award for this role.
Main Sunder Hoon-a 1971 Bollywood drama film directed by R. Krishnan and Nazir Hussain. The film stars Mehmood and Leena Chandavarkar. Mehmood played Sundar who works in a hotel.He is a very funny, uneducated man, with a suitably funny face, opposite to his name.He falls in love Leena Chandravarkar who often comes to the hotel, and Sunder happens to meet her and amuse her with funny jokes.
Do Phool - a 1973 Indian Hindi-language comedy film directed by S. Ramanathan. The film stars Ashok Kumar, Vinod Mehra and Mehmood .He played Double Role in this film as Pavitra Kumar Rai 'Puttan' / Mani
Kunwara Baap- a 1974 Hindi movie produced by Amarlal Chabria and directed by and starring Mehmood.It's a film with a serious message about polio vaccination. However, Mehmood did some comedy scenes in the film to earn a Filmfare nomination as Best Comic, the only nomination for the film.The hijra song "Saj Rahi Gali" sung by Mohd. Rafi topped the annual Binaca Geet Mala'
