Rajesh Khanna On Dilip Kumar: "He Had An Image Of A Tragedian And A Romantic Hero"

Long before Shah Rukh Khan made his debut, Rajesh Khanna was known as the “king of romance” in Bollywood. The star, who passed away in 2012, is also celebrated as the first superstar of the Hindi film industry. Reflecting on the legacy of romantic heroes, Rajesh Khanna once shared his thoughts on how they will always be remembered, reported News18. “It's obvious when you look back, that the romantic heroes are those remembered today, and will always be remembered. In the 30s, there was PC Barua and KL Saigal. After that, we had Ashok Kumar saab and Dilip Kumar saab. Then to some extent, there was Dev Anand and by the 60s, it was my turn. There have been different kinds of romantic heroes, like Dilip Kumar, who had the image of a tragedian and a romantic hero,” he had said in an interview.

Rajesh Khanna also talked about how romantic heroes are “immortal.” He said, “But there have been some fortunate people, like me. In romance, it is difficult to create such an individual image. If I have done it, it is only because music, romance, and everything else helped me. Whenever a romantic hero has been created on screen, he has become immortal.”

Over his 48-year career, Rajesh Khanna delivered numerous romantic films, including Aradhana, Doli, Bandhan, Ittefaq, Do Raaste, Khamoshi, Safar, The Train, Kati Patang, Sachaa Jhutha, Aan Milo Sajna, Mehboob Ki Mehendi, Choti Bahu and many more. He died at the age of 69 in July 2012 after a battle with cancer. The legendary actor was last seen in the film Riyasat, which was released posthumously in 2014. In the movie directed by Ashok Tyagi, Rajesh Khanna portrayed the role of Godfather Don Saheb. Riyasat also featured Gauri Kulkarni, Aryeman Ramsay, Raza Murad, Aryan Vaid and Vishwajeet Pradhan.

Rajesh Khanna was posthumously awarded the Padma Bhushan in 2013. It is India's third-highest civilian award.