'Shor' starring Manoj Kumar, Nanda and Jaya Bahadhuri was my mom's favourite. And she saw it first in Nagaland's Wokha.
A human comes to this world to live for four days ... but the sadness of 40 years keeps surrounding him
"Apne yahan ki mitti ki khushboo hai na ... woh toh ajnabi logo ki saanson mein bhi sanskar bhar deti hai
Even the smell of soil from our place ... fills culture in the breath of strange people"
(Purab Aur Pachhim)
Long before nationalism became a marketable trend ...Manoj Kumar was the poster child of patriotic cinema in India — crafting characters named Bharat.
He excelled in delivering stirring monologues on sacrifice, identity, and love for the motherland !!
Veteran actor Manoj Kumar, who was known as Bharat' and gave popular films, 'Purab Aur Paschim', 'Roti, Kapada Aur Makaan' and 'Kranti' died at a private hospital in Mumbai.
He was 87.
" Zindagi ka asli maza toh apne desh ki seva mein hai" (Purab Aur Paschim, 1971) 7.
"Insaan is duniya mein chaar din ki zindagi guzaarne aata hai ... lekin chaalis din ka gham usse gehre rakhta hai"
(Mera Naam Joker)
"Duniya mein sabse bada dharma hai apne desh ke liye pyaar" (Bahadur, 1971)
Manoj Kumar's death may force film lovers and the Bollywood to go down the memory lanes ... push back a little and then try to come to reality and move forward with the art of good story telling ... dealing with films on subjects and protagonists showing love for the country.
An anti-thesis of Manoj Kumar's type of films was probably deliberated created. It thrived on anti-India and to a large extent anti-Hindu narratives.
The deceased star's actor son Kunal Goswami said Manoj Kumar breathed his last at around 3.30 am.
He said that the cremation will take place at around 12 noon at Pawan Hans Crematorium on Saturday. "It's the grace of the god that he bid adieu to this world peacefully. His cremation will take place tomorrow."
Manoj Kumar was the recipient of a National Film Award and seven Filmfare awards.
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| Star in Kranti |
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| In 'Upkar' with Prem Chopra - played brothers |
People, nations and industries, occasionally, get the shock. The blues. This is such a melancholic occasion. The film industry is already facing challenges. Manoj Kumar's works are reminders of quality works. The Bollywood will be able to come out of the challenging times if films of Manoj Kumar's school of ideas are done. There was a fine synthesis between good story telling and combing that with the art of film making.
Occasionally we get good 'patriotic' films like 'Uri- The Surgical Strike'. There can be more.
The challenges for Bollywood or the Indian film industry and even the entire entertainment world are many and complex these days. This is an era of social media, internet boom and the films via Netflix and Amazon Prime.
Essentially, if you want to survive this 'polluted and challenging environment'; there is a need to appreciate the positives. The 'positives' about own religion, community and hence even the country.
Late Manoj Kumar was honoured the Padma Shri in 1992 and the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award; highest award in field of cinema in 2015 by the Government of India for his contribution to Indian cinema and arts.
Looking back, the year 1965 was a big year for Manoj Kumar, as it initiated his rise to stardom. His first release was patriotic drama 'Shaheed', based on the life of Bhagat Singh, the Independence revolutionary.
It received highly positive responses from critics as well as the then Prime Minister of India Lal Bahadur Shastri.
This was followed by romantic drama Himalay Ki God Mein, a blockbuster which made him a bankable star.
Before the end of year, he scored another massive hit with the mystery thriller Gumnaam.
The success streak continued in 1966, when he acted in Khosla's 'Do Badan' alongside Asha Parekh. This film was remembered for Khosla's direction, Kumar's performance, and songs written by the lyricist Shakeel Badayuni, including "Raha Gardishon Mein", sung by Mohammed Rafi, and "Lo Aa Gayi Unki Yaad", a solo by Lata Mangeshkar.
After the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri asked him to create a film based on the popular slogan Jai Jawan Jai Kissan ("Hail the soldier, hail the farmer").
The result was his directorial debut, the patriotic drama Upkar (1967).
It opened to critical acclaim and topped the box office chart that year, eventually emerging an All Time Blockbuster.
Its music was the sixth best-selling Hindi film album of the 1960s. One of the song from Upkar, "Mere Desh Ki Dharti" is played every year during the Republic Day and Independence Day celebrations.
The film won Kumar the National Film Award for Second Best Feature Film as well as his first Filmfare Best Director Award.
His next release, 'Patthar Ke Sanam' too went on to become a huge hit, but Anita opposite Sadhana flopped.
In 1968, he co-starred alongside Raaj Kumar and Waheeda Rehman in Neel Kamal.
The same year, he reunited with Rehman for Aadmi, which also had Dilip Kumar in the lead. Neel Kamal proved a blockbuster at the box office, becoming the third highest-grossing film of 1968.
'Upkar' won several Filmfare Awards
Best Film – V. I. P. Films
Best Director – Manoj Kumar
Best Supporting Actor – Pran
Best Lyricist – Gulshan Bawra for "Mere Desh Ki Dharti"
Best Story – Manoj Kumar
Best Dialogue – Manoj Kumar
(Pran had a wonderful role in the film and for the first time probably the popular screen 'villain' played a do-gooder -- a conscious keeper.)
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| 'There is no gun created yet that can kill Truth' |
ends
Jab zero diya mere Bharat ne was his signature song. I took liking for this song in late 80s when the movie *Purab aur Paschim* was telecast on Doordarshan. - Kirti bhau
ReplyDeleteRIP to Mr India Manoj Kumar -- Mr Anand; Manipur
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