Rajesh Khanna in a still from Anand. (courtesy: RajeshKhanna)
Rajesh Khanna, the "first superstar of Bollywood", gifted films which stood the test of time. On his death anniversary, let's have a look at them
Anand: This heart-touching film was co-written and directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee. Gulzar wrote the dialogues. It stars Rajesh Khanna in the lead role, with a supporting cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Sumita Sanyal, Ramesh Deo and Seema Deo. The film included many awards including the Filmfare Award for Best Film in 1972.
Amar Prem: It is a remake of the Bengali film Nishi Padma (1970) and directed by Arabinda Mukherjee. Sharmila Tagore, Rajesh Khanna, Vinod Mehra, Satyendra Kapoor played pivotal roles in the film. The film is also memorable for its melodious music. R. D. Burman composed the music while songs were sung by playback singers like Kishore Kumar, R.D. Burman's father S.D. Burman and Lata Mangeshkar.
Bawarchi: Directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee, the film boasts of an ensemble cast comprising Rajesh Khanna, Jaya Bhaduri, Asrani, Harindranath Chattopadhyay, A.K. Hangal, Durga Khote, Manisha, Kali Banerjee. It's also a remake of a bengali film Galpo Holeo Satti (1966) by Tapan Sinha.
Aradhana: Directed by Shakti Samanta, this film also brought back the hit jodi of Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore on the big screen. It won the Filmfare Award for Best Film at the 17th Filmfare Awards. Apart from the lead cast, Ashok Kumar, Sujit Kumar, Pahari Sanyal acted in the film.
Ittefaq: The film stars Nanda and Rajesh Khanna in the lead with Sujit Kumar, Bindu, Madan Puri and Iftekhar playing supporting roles. The film was directed by Yash Chopra. The film is based on 1965 American movie Signpost to Murder.
Namak Haraam: Another hit film from the repertoire of director Hrishikesh Mukherjee and actor Rajesh Khanna. The film stars Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan. It also stars Rekha, Asrani, Raza Murad, A. K. Hangal, Simi Garewal and Om Shivpuri. Rajesh Khanna received his third BFJA Awards for Best Actor (Hindi) in 1974 for this film.