Raaj Kumar
Kumarc. 1960
Born	Kulbhushan Pandit (1926-10-08)8 October 1926 Loralai,Baluchistan,British India (present-dayBalochistan,Pakistan)
Died	3 July 1996(1996-07-03) (aged 69) Mumbai,Maharashtra,India
Nationality	Indian
Occupations	Film actor Police officer
Years active	1952–1995
Employer	Bombay Police
Spouse	Gayatri Kumar
Children	3 (includingPuru Raaj Kumar)

Raaj Kumar (bornKulbhushan Pandit; 8 October 1926 – 3 July 1996) was an Indian actor who worked inHindi films.^[1] He worked as a police officer before entering the film industry. In a career that spanned over four decades, he went on to star in 70 films and is regarded as one of the most successful actors of Indian cinema.^[2]

Kulbhushan Pandit was born on 8 October, 1926 inLoralai in theBaluchistan Province ofBritish India (now inPakistan) into aKashmiri Pandit family.^[3][4] In the late 1940s, he moved toBombay, where he became asub-inspector underBombay Police.^[5] In the 1960s, he married Jennifer Pandit, anAnglo-Indian, whom he met on a flight where she was an air hostess. She later changed her name to Gayatri Kumar as per Hindu customs.^[3] They had three children, sonsPuru Raaj Kumar (an actor), Panini Raaj Kumar and daughter Vastavikta Pandit, who made her screen debut in 2006 filmEight: The Power of Shani.^[6]

Raaj Kumar began his career withRangeeli in 1952 and followed it withAnmol Sahar (1952),Aabshar (1953),Ghamand (1955), none of which could establish him. After many years of struggle, he got his breakthrough withMehboob Khan'sepic drama filmMother India (1957).^[7] It opened to critical acclaim and emerged anAll Time Blockbuster at the box office as well as the most successful film of the 1950s.^[8] It went on to win several accolades and was featured in the book1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die.^[9][10] The huge box office success ofMother India was followed by another blockbuster inS. S. Vasan'ssocial drama filmPaigham (1959), which hadDilip Kumar andVyjayanthimala in the lead.^[11] Kumar received praise for his performance of a caring elder brother and got a nomination in theFilmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor category.^[12]

Kumar began the new decade withKishore Sahu'sromantic dramaDil Apna Aur Preet Parai.^[13] The film proved to be a box office superhit with one of its song "Ajeeb Dastan Hai Yeh" sung byLata Mangeshkar becoming a chartbuster.^[14] In 1961, he appeared alongsideRajendra Kumar andAsha Parekh inGharana.^[15] A remake ofTelugu blockbusterShanthi Nivasam, the film proved to be equally successful inHindi and emerged a superhit at the box office.^[16] After an absence lasting a year, he reunited with Rajendra Kumar and Meena Kumari forC. V. Sridhar's romantic dramaDil Ek Mandir.^[17] It opened to highly positive response from audience and went on to become a superhit with Kumar receivingFilmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the film.^[18] His other major release of the year,Phool Bane Angaare also did reasonably well at the box office.^[19] In 1964, he once again worked with Rajendra Kumar and Vyjayanthimala inRamanand Sagar's second directional ventureZindagi.^[20] The film opened to positive response and added one more box office hit in his kitty.^[21]

After many years of doing second leads, Raaj Kumar became a saleable star in 1965 withYash Chopra's ensemblemasala filmWaqt and Ram Maheshwari's romantic dramaKaajal, both of which opened to massive response from audience and went on to become blockbusters.^[22][23][24] For portraying a sophisticated thief inWaqt, Kumar won massive acclaim and his secondFilmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor.^[25] His performance inKaajal was also appreciated and he received his first and only nomination in theFilmfare Award for Best Actor category for the film.^[26] Kumar's other notable release of the year was Phani Majumdar'sdrama filmOonche Log co-starringAshok Kumar andFeroz Khan.^[27] The film received positive reviews from critics and wonNational Film Award for Second Best Feature Film in Hindi.^[28] After having no release in 1966, the following year, he reunited with makers ofWaqt for thesuspense thrillerHamraaz.^[29] The film proved to be a major critical and commercial success, eventually emerging a blockbuster and winningNational Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi.^[30][31] One of its song, "Neele Gagan Ke Tale", sung byMahendra Kapoor and filmed on Kumar andVimi proved to be an instant hit and won Kapoor his secondFilmfare Award for Best Male Playback Singer.^[32] He also reunited with C. V. Sridhar (the director ofDil Ek Mandir) for the multi-starrer social dramaNai Roshni, but contrary to expectations, it did not performed well. He concluded the decade with two biggies -Mere Huzoor andNeel Kamal.^[33][34] While the former co-starringJeetendra andMala Sinha did moderately well, the latter alongsideManoj Kumar andWaheeda Rehman was a superhit and one of the top five highest grossing films of 1968.^[35] For portraying a soul longing for his lost love inNeel Kamal, Kumar received his fifth and final nomination in theFilmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor category.^[36]

The early-1970s saw Kumar appearing in some of his most iconic films.^[37] His only release of 1970 wasChetan Anand'sromantic musicalHeer Raanjha oppositePriya Rajvansh.^[38] It opened to highly positive reviews from critics and emerged a box office hit.^[39] The soundtrack ofHeer Raanjha composed byMadan Mohan was a chartbuster with aMohammed Rafi solo - "Yeh Duniya, Yeh Mehfil Mere Kaam Ki Nahin" becoming a rage among the masses.^[39] The success ofHeer Raanjha was followed byLal Patthar andMaryada in 1971.^[40][41] While,Lal Patthar in which he got paired withHema Malini was an average fare,Maryada opposite Mala Sinha and co-starringRajesh Khanna proved to be a superhit.^[42] In 1972, Kumar appeared inKamal Amrohi's magnum opusPakeezah which also hadMeena Kumari (in her final film appearance) and Ashok Kumar in the lead.^[43] Despite receiving polarizing reviews and being a slow starter, it went on to become a massive blockbuster at the box office and gained cult status in later years.^[44] Its soundtrack composed byNaushad dominated the musical charts and was the eighth best-selling Hindi film album of the 1970s.^[45]

Kumar then appeared in films,Dil Ka Raja (1972),Hindustan Ki Kasam (1973) and36 Ghante (1974), all three of which flopped at the box office.^[46] This changed withBrij Sadanah's'saction comedy filmEk Se Badhkar Ek (1976), alongside Ashok Kumar,Navin Nischol andSharmila Tagore. The film performed very well at the box office and was also remade inTelugu asMugguru Muggure.^[47][48] In 1978, Kumar reunited with Jeetendra and Mala Sinha for Ram Maheshwari'saction drama filmKarmayogi in which he played a double role.^[49] It opened to positive response from critics and emerged a superhit.^[50]

Kumar began the 1980s with Ram Maheshwari's dacoit dramaChambal Ki Kasam, which sank without a trace.^[51] In 1981, he had two releases, out of which,Esmayeel Shroff's crime thrillerBulundi proved to be a moderate fare while Chetan Anand'sreincarnation dramaKudrat alongside Rajesh Khanna,Vinod Khanna, Hema Malini and Priya Rajvansh was a critical and commercial failure.^[52][53] In 1982, he reunited with Rajesh Khanna and Jeetendra forSultan Ahmed's successful actionerDharam Kanta.^[54] This was followed by a series of critical and commercial duds inEk Nai Paheli (1984),Sharara (1984),Raaj Tilak (1984),Itihaas (1987),Muqaddar Ka Faisla (1987),Mohabbat Ke Dushman (1988),Saazish (1988),Mahaveera (1988) andJungbaaz (1989).^[55] During this phase, Kumar remained steady with superhits inMehul Kumar'sMarte Dam Tak (1987) and Esmayeel Shroff'sSuryaa: An Awakening (1989).^[56][57]

Kumar began the 1990s with another of Esmayeel Shroff's film, the crime thrillerPolice Public (1990).^[58] An adaptation ofOru CBI Diary Kurippu (1988), it performed well commercially and went on to become a box office hit.^[59] The following year, he reunited with hisPaigham co-star Dilip Kumar forSubhash Ghai's action drama filmSaudagar.^[60] The film emerged a blockbuster and took 1st spot at the box office in 1991.^[61] Its soundtrack composed byLaxmikant–Pyarelal was a chartbuster and the fourth best-selling Hindi film album of that year.^[62] In 1993, Kumar starred alongsideNana Patekar in Mehul Kumar's magnum opus, the patriotic action dramaTirangaa (1993).^[63]Tirangaa opened to excellent response all over the nation and proved to be another blockbuster for the actor.^[64] It was also the final box office success of Kumar as his later films likeBetaaj Badshah (1994),Jawab (1995) andGod and Gun (1995) (which was his last film role) were critical and commercial failures.^[65]

Kumar died at the age of 69 on 3 July 1996 fromthroat cancer.^[66][67] According to his sonPuru Raaj Kumar in his interview to Farhana Farook, his father suffered from Hodgkins for which he had undergone chemotherapy. The last two years of his life were bad with the nodes recurring in the lungs and ribs.^[68]

• 1964 –Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor forDil Ek Mandir^[17]
• 1966 – Nominated – Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor forKaajal^[25]
• 1966 – Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor forWaqt^[25]
• 1966 – Nominated –Filmfare Award for Best Actor forKaajal^[25]
• 1969 – Nominated – Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor forNeel Kamal^[36]

Kumar is regarded as one of the greatest actors of Indian cinema. Noted for his dialogue delivery and style, he enthused writers to conceive larger-than-life characters to suit his image as a personality suffused with wit and sarcasm.^[69][70] His catchphrase "Jaani" and white shoes (first featured in the filmWaqt) evolved to be an extension of his personality.^[71] Kumar is referred to as the "Prince of Bollywood" due to his fiercely independent spirit.^[72]

In 2022, he was placed inOutlook India's "75 Best Bollywood Actors" list.^[73]

• Raaj Kumar atIMDb

• Indian male film actors
• 1926 births
• 1996 deaths
• Kashmiri Pandits
• Male actors in Hindi cinema
• Police officers from Mumbai
• Male actors from Mumbai
• 20th-century Indian male actors
• Kashmiri actors
• Indian Hindus
• Filmfare Awards winners

• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use Indian English from February 2014
• All Wikipedia articles written in Indian English
• Use dmy dates from May 2020
• Articles with hCards