Veteran actor Rajesh Khanna who died of cancer at the age of 69 in Mumbai on Wednesday, is widely considered to be the original superstar of Bollywood. With three Filmfare awards, Rajesh Khanna had been a heartthrob for millions for many years.
Here are the 10 facts about the superstar one should know
Before he married Dimple Kapadia, Rajesh Khanna bought a lavish bungalow called Dimple from actor Rajendra Kumar and renamed it Aashirwad. The house had proved unlucky for "Jubilee" Kumar, but Rajesh Khanna delivered 15 hits in a row, a record still unbroken by any actor.
As a struggling actor, Rajesh Khanna drove himself to work and back in his own MG sports car.
Even though Rajesh Khanna had a 100% success rate with actress Mumtaz, delivering eight blockbuster films with her, Hema Malini was his heroine the most number of times. They appeared in 15 films together.
Rajesh Khanna was the highest paid actor from 1970-79 and shared the honour with Amitabh Bachchan from 1980-87.
His closest friends in Bollywood were singer Kishore Kumar and music director R D Burman.
Rajesh Khanna's debut film Aakhri Khat was India's official Oscar entry in 1967. It didn't make the final five cut.
Director Shekhar Kapur offered Mr India to Rajesh Khanna first, who turned it down because he couldn't relate to the invisible hero. The role finally went to Anil Kapoor.
Before he made it big, Rajesh Khanna was called the "faaltu hero" because of his unconventional features. With stardom came very different epithets - Superstar and Pasha Of Passion.
The "guru kurta" he made famous was originally the garment of choice of farmers and small time politicians.
The song Roop Tera Mastana from Aradhana starring Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore made Bollywood history as the first single take shot.
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