The ‘Tragedy King’ of Bollywood left the entire industry mourning this morning. Known for his some unforgettable performances in movies like Aan, Daag, Devdas, Madhumati, Azaad, Mughal-e-Azam, Gunga Jamuna, Kranti, Karma, Ram Aur Shyam, among others, Dilip Kumar had a career of over five decades. Dilip Kumar also possessed the distinction of being the only Indian recipient of Pakistan’s highest civilian award, Nishan-e-Imtiaz.
For his contribution to cinema, Dilip Kumar was conferred with India’s highest award in the art-form the ‘Dadasaheb Phalke Award’. He also received the Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian award of the country. Dilip Kumar is listed in the Guinness World Records for winning the maximum number of awards by an Indian actor
Along with Shah Rukh Khan, he held the record for winning the most Filmfare Awards in the Best Actor category: 8. He also won the inaugural trophy in the same category in 1954.
Doctor Jalil Parkar, who was incharge of the legendary actor told that, “Dilip Kumar passed away at 7:30 am on Wednesday. He passed away due to prolonged illness. He was 98.”
Doctors said Dilip Kumar suffered from advanced prostate cancer that had spread to other organs of his body. “He had water in pleural cavity, and he suffered a kidney failure. He required blood transfusion multiple times. We carried the last transfusion but it did not help,” a hospital doctor said. He suffered a drop in blood pressure and haemoglobin towards the end. “The cancer spread made it difficult to treat him,” the doctor said
The actor’s official Twitter account also confirmed the news of his death, “With a heavy heart and profound grief, I announce the passing away of our beloved Dilip Saab, few minutes ago. We are from God and to Him we return.” Another updated said the last rites of the late actor will take place at 5 pm on Wednesday. “Burial today at 5:00 PM. Juhu Qabrastan at Santacruz Mumbai.”
As soon as the news of his demise came out, actors to directors to politicians to sportspersons, all expressed their condolences and mourned the loss of the legend on social media. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also paid a tribute to Dilip Kumar in a tweet. He wrote, “Dilip Kumar Ji 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. Condolences to his family, friends and innumerable admirers. RIP.”
Meanwhile, the whole industry grieved and several renowned actors like Amitabh Bachchan, Vicky Kaushal, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Suniel Shetty, Shilpa Shetty, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Shahid Kapoor, Karan Johar, Varun Dhawan, Ananya Panday, Kunal Kemmu, Ishaan Khatter and many others from the industry shared how they were heartbroken over the loss of the legendary actor.
Dilip Kumar born Yusuf Khan was a trendsetter in terms of acting style, and inspired generations of actors across the various streams of Indian cinema. Dilip Kumar was born in the Qissa Khawani Bazaar area of Peshawar (present day Pakistan) to Ayesha Begum and Lala Ghulam Sarwar Khan. He debuted in films with 1944’s Jwar Bhata, but the film and his work did not garner much attention. It was with 1947’s Jugnu, also starring Noor Jehan, that he clinched his first box office hit.
