Legends
The Bizzare Combination of Police and Raanjha – Raaj Kumar
Hum tumhe maarenge, aur zaroor maarenge … lekin woh bandook bhi hamari hogi, goli bhi hamari hogi aur waqt bhi hamara hoga
Hamari zabaan bhi hamari goli ki tarah … dushmanon se seedhe baat karti hai
Who will dare to forget these classic dialogues delivered in the history of Hindi cinema? And who will not remember the face and the voice which delivered the dialogues?
He was known for his unique style of dialogue delivery, and made valuable contribution as an actor in more than seventy films. Born as Kulbhushan Pandit, Raaj Kumar was a Sub – Inspector of Mumbai Police before he moved to acting. It is hard to believe that a sub-inspector will one day earn his name as a romantic hero.
Kumar was born on 8th October 1926 in a Kashmiri Pandit family. He made a debut at the silver screen with the movie Rangeeli in 1952. Nausherwan – E – Adil in the year 1957 brought him to limelight as an actor. In the same year he was noticed and appreciated for a short role in Mother India, a movie which was nominated in the Oscar awards.
Paigham, in which he acted with Dilip Kumar, Yash Chopra’s Waqt, Hamraaz (1967), Heer Raanjha (1971), Lal Patthar (1971), Pakeezah (1972) are some of the great hits of his career. Movies like Kudrat (1981), Muqaddar Ka Faisla (1987), Saudagar (1991) are some movies which are noted for his character roles.
Kumar got married to Gayatri who was an Anglo – Indian with the name Jennifer whom he met in a flight where she was an air hostess. The couple had three children. His son Puru Raajkumar is a Bollywood actor; his other two children being Panini Raajkumar and Vastavikta Raajkumar. Puru Raajkumar once revealed that Kumar was a very soft – hearted person in contrast to the assertive roles he played on screen. Fluent in the language Urdu, the actor was an ardent lover of horse riding and was a golfer as well. A true family man, his children still nurture the memories of the family vacation they used to spend amidst the beautiful valleys of Kashmir.
Kumar died of cancer in the year 1996 at the age of 69. Let’s take out some time and recall the hit songs of the actor
A song which you might not watch often, but for sure you hum this song when you feel dejected
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHw0h1kDPvA
The actor crooning for his beloved Waheeda Rehman in Neel Kamal
Mohammad Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar singing for Raaj Kumar and Meena Kumari in Pakeezah
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2bl57tFlLQ
Romance amidst the beautiful landscape
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoityCJ22hs
A movie where he reunited with Dilip Kumar on screen after 32 years
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nC96wFM6xpc
‘Ajeeb Dastan’ of Raaj Kumar and Meena Kumari
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2Xjv5uDlK4
A song from Lal Patthar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N47ndACrJJc
