Dilip Kumar the 'Tragedy King' of Bollywood dead at 98 after prolonged illness... as praise pours in from PM Modi and Hindi cinema grandees
- Bollywood icon Dilip Kumar died at 98 Wednesday
- He passed away in a Mumbai hospital after a long illness
- Kumar was known as the 'Tragedy King' of Hindi cinema
- One of his best-known films is the 1960 historical epic Mughal-E-Azam
- He was hospitalized twice last month after complaining of 'breathlessness'
- His death comes after he lost two brothers to COVID-19 last year
- Indian PM Narendra Modi remembered him as a 'cinematic legend'
- 'An institution has gone,' Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan tweeted
Bollywood icon Dilip Kumar, hailed as the 'Tragedy King' and one of Hindi cinema's greatest actors, died Wednesday in a Mumbai hospital after a prolonged illness. He was 98.
The 'Tragedy King' title came from Kumar´s numerous serious roles. In several, his character died as a frustrated lover and a drunkard. He also was known as one of Bollywood's earliest Method actors for his expressive performances identifying a character's emotions.
Kumar was hospitalized twice last month after he complained of breathlessness, and his family tweeted 'with a heavy heart and profound grief' the announcement of his passing. His death comes after he lost two brothers last year to COVID-19.
Bollywood icon: Dilip Kumar, hailed as the 'Tragedy King' and one of Hindi cinema's greatest actors, died Wednesday in a Mumbai hospital after a prolonged illness; pictured 2008
Mourning: His loved ones are seen mourning at his body near a hospital in Mumbai this Friday
'Dilip Kumar will be remembered as a cinematic legend. He was blessed with unparalleled brilliance, due to which audiences across generations were enthralled. His passing away is a loss to our cultural world,' Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a tweet that also offered his condolences to Kumar's family and admirers.
'An institution has gone,' Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan tweeted. 'Whenever the history of Indian Cinema will be written, it shall always be "before Dilip Kumar, and after Dilip Kumar..."'
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'It´s the end of an era,' filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar said.
Kumar was born Muhammad Yusuf Khan, a Muslim, on Dec. 11, 1922. His Pathan family hailed from Peshawar, in what became Pakistan after Partition, and he visited his ancestral home in the late 1980s.
Iconic: The 'Tragedy King' title came from Kumar´s numerous serious roles including in the 1960 historical epic Mughal-E-Azam where he is pictured with Madhubala
He changed his name as he debuted in Bollywood, the Hindi-language film industry centered in what was then Bombay, with Jwar Bhata, or 'Sea Tides,' in 1944.
His career spanned over six decades with over 60 films. His first major box-office hits were Jugnu, or 'Firefly,' in 1947 in which he starred alongside Noor Jehan, and the 1948 film Shaheed, or 'Martyr.'
He played a variety of characters - a romantic hero in Andaz, a swashbuckler in Aan, a dramatic drunkard in Devdas, a comic role in Azaad, a Muslim prince in the historical epic Mughal-e-Azam and a robber in the social movie Ganga Jamuna.
Mehboob Khan's blockbuster Aan in 1952 was his first film in Technicolor and was among a string of light-hearted roles he took at the suggestion of his psychiatrist to shed his 'Tragedy King' image.
Legends both: 'An institution has gone,' Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan tweeted; the duo are pictured together in 2012 in Mumbai
He starred in many social drama films like Footpath, Naya Daur ('New Era'), Musafir ('Traveler') and Paigham ('Message') in 1950s.
It was the only film he produced. Indian media reports say he declined the role of Sherif Ali in David Lean´s Lawrence of Arabia in 1962. The role went to Egyptian actor Omar Sharif.
He took a break in the late '70s but returned with a character role in the successful Kranti, or 'Revolution' in 1981. He continued playing key roles in films such as Shakti, Karma and Saudagar. His last film was Qila ('Fort') in 1998.
In 1961, he produced and starred in Ganga Jamuna in which he and his brother Nasir Khan played the title roles.
Looking back: In several of Kumar's films, his character died as a frustrated lover and a drunkard; one of them is the 1995 film Devdas
In 1994, he was given the Dadasaheb Phalke award, the highest honor for contributions to Indian cinema. He also served in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Indian Parliament, after being nominated for a six-year term.
His top female co-stars included Madhubala, Nargis, Nimmi, Meena Kumari, Kamini Kaushal and Vyjanthimala.
Kumar had a relationship with Madhubala that lasted seven years and culminated in an engagement - only for them to split in acrimony amid his feud with her father, whom Kumar called a 'dictator' while testifying against him in court.
In 1966, Dilip Kumar married Saira Banu, who was 22 years younger than him, and the couple acted in Gopi, Sagina Mahato and Bairaag. They had no children.
Grand return: He took a break in the late '70s but returned with a character role in the successful Kranti, or 'Revolution' in 1981; the poster for Kranti is pictured
While he was with Banu he took a second wife - socialite divorcee Asma Rehman - in accordance with Islamic custom allowing a man to have four wives at a time.
'I am not prepared to be just one of his two wives,' Banu said after learning of the second marriage. 'Earlier there were rumors and suspicions, but since he swore to me on the Quran that they were not true I was duty-bound to believe him.'
However the marriage to Rehman broke up in 1983 after just two years and he later called their relationship 'a grave mistake I made under pressure.'
He remained married to Banu until his death and she looked after him through his final decline. His burial will occur Thursday at the Juhu Qabrastan in Mumbai.
Side by side: He married Saira Banu, who was 22 years his junior, in 1966 and they remained together until his death; the couple are pictured in 2004
What a pair: Kumar had a relationship with Madhubala that lasted seven years and culminated in an engagement; they are pictured in graffiti honoring Mughal-E-Azam in 2013 Mumbai
