Veteran actor Manoj Kumar, known as ‘Bharat Kumar’ for his patriotic movies, passed away at 87 in Mumbai on Friday. Kumar is survived by his spouse, Shashi Goswami, along with two sons, Vishal Goswami and Kunal Goswami. Bollywood is grieving the loss of one of its legendary icons, and social media is awash with tributes honoring his everlasting classics.
Manoj Kumar was more than just an actor; he was a director, screenwriter, lyricist, and editor as well. A Padma Shri awardee and winner of the esteemed Dadasaheb Phalke Award, he played a key role in shaping Hindi cinema through his esteemed contributions.
Early life of Manoj Kumar
Manoj Kumar, originally named Harikrishna Giri Goswami, was born on July 24, 1937, in Abbottabad, now part of Pakistan. From a small village in the North-West Frontier Province of British India, he and his family moved to Delhi during the partition. At that time, he was just 10 years old.
Kumar earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hindu College. He subsequently chose to pursue his fortune in movies. In his challenging times, Kumar served as a ghostwriter at various studios and earned Rs 11 for each scene. He began his acting career in 1957 with a movie called ‘Fashion Brand’. The actor achieved his breakthrough by starring in the 1961 movie ‘Kaanch Ki Gudiya’.
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The Stardom
The veteran actor gained stardom for his patriotic movies, such as ‘Purab Aur Paschim’, ‘Upkar’, and ‘Kranti’, among several others.
After the Indo-Pak War of 1965, the then-Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri reportedly asked him to produce a movie centered around the slogan ‘Jai Jawan Jai Kissan’. Later in 1967, he came up with the movie ‘Upkar’ debuting as a director. The movie is based on the Indo-Pak war.
Manoj Kumar acquired the nickname ‘Bharat Kumar’ due to his nationalistic films.
In 1964, Kumar was featured in Raj Khosla’s film ‘Woh Kaun Thi?’ alongside Sadhana Shivdasani. He collaborated again with Mala Sinha and Vijay Bhatt in ‘Himalay Ki Godmein’ (1965). Kumar and Khosla built on their success with ‘Do Badan’ (1966), where he starred alongside Asha Parekh.
His suspense film, ‘Gumnaam’ (1965), was another major success at the box office, ranking among the top-grossing films that year with earnings of Rs 2.6 crore. He also played key roles in classics like ‘Sawan Ki Ghata’ (1966) and ‘Patthar Ke Sanam’ (1967).
A huge fan of Dilip Kumar
Manoj Kumar admired Dilip Kumar greatly. It is reported that he changed his birth name to Manoj Kumar following Dilip Kumar’s portrayal of a character named Manoj Kumar in the 1949 movie ‘Shabnam’.
He directed his idol, Dilip Kumar, in the movie ‘Kranti’ (1981), which examined the Indian fight for independence. Following Kranti, Kumar featured in movies like ‘Kalyug Aur Ramayan’ (1987), ‘Clerk’ (1989), and ‘Maidan-E-Jung’ (1995). He also guided his son Kunal Goswami in the film ‘Jai Hind’ (1999).
