Rajendra Kumar (1927–1999) was an Indian actor and producer. He has acted in the films Patanga (1949), Vachan (1955), Mother India (1957), Maa Baap (1960), Do Sholay (1977), Rustom (1982) and Phool (1993). The Government of India honored him with the Padma Shri award in 1970. Rajendra Kumar died at the age of 71 due to heart failure.
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Rajendra Kumar Tuli was born on Wednesday, 20 July 1927 (Age 71 years; at the time of death) in Sialkot, Punjab province, British India (now Punjab, Pakistan). His zodiac sign is Cancer. He attended Hailey College of Commerce in Lahore; However, his education was cut short in his second year during partition. Before getting into acting, Rajendra Kumar worked as an assistant to director HS Rawail, who tried to convince him that he was not made for acting, which Rajendra Kumar criticized.
Rajendra Kumar with HS Rawail and Raj Kumar
In 1975, Rajendra Kumar built a theater within his residential property and named it Dimple Theatre, a venture which was successful.
Physical Appearance
Height (Approx): 5′ 8″
Hair Color: Black
Eye colour: black
family and caste
Rajendra Kumar was born in Sialkot, Punjab, Pakistan into a wealthy Punjabi Hindu Khatri family. His family had to leave their wealth and come to India during Partition, where they lived in shared accommodation in Delhi’s Sabzi Mandi.
parents and siblings
His father, Laxmichand Tuli (deceased) was born in a very rich family and had a textile business in Karachi. His mother’s name is Vidyavati. He is the eldest brother with two sisters, Manorama and Kamala, and a younger brother, Naresh Kumar, who is a film director.
wife and children
His wife, Shukla Kumar, belongs to the Bahl family, a prominent family in the Hindi film industry. Both of them got married on 5 December 1954. They have two children, a son, Kumar Gaurav, who is an actor and businessman, and two daughters, Dimple Kumar, who married Hollywood film producer and director Raju Patel, and Kajal Tuli.
Rajendra Kumar with his wife Shukla Kumar
Rajendra Kumar with his wife Shukla and three children
other relatives
Rajendra’s grandfather Chajuram Tuli was one of the wealthiest men in Sankhatra, Sialkot (present-day Pakistan), and was a military contractor.
relationships/affairs
Rajendra Kumar and Saira Banu were on-screen partners who were also reported to be in a romantic relationship. Both of them worked in films like Aayi Milan Ki Bela (1964), Aman (1967) and Jhuk Gaya Aasman (1968). It is said that Saira Banu had fallen in love with Rajendra and wanted to marry him despite him having a wife and children. His feelings were reportedly reciprocated and Rajendra was ready to leave his family for Saira Banu. Saira’s mother requested Dilip Kumar to intervene, after which Saira and Dilip got married. In his biographical book Jubilee Kumar: The Life and Times of a Superstar, Rajendra Kumar stated that there was no “ill-regard” between the two actors, even though they liked each other.
Rajendra Kumar with co-star Saira Banu
signature/autograph
Rajendra Kumar’s autograph
livelihood
film
Rajendra Kumar started his journey in the film industry with a small role in Patanga (1949).
Album cover of the film Patanga (1949)
She then played a small role in the film Jogan (1950) alongside iconic actors Dilip Kumar and Nargis Dutt. This role caught the attention of director and producer Devendra Goyal, who chose Rajendra for the lead role in the film Vachan (1955).
Rajendra Kumar on the poster of his first film as a lead actor – Vachan (1955)
This film brought him success and was his first (among many) silver jubilee film. His role in the film Mother India (1957) further led to his success.
Rajendra Kumar in the film Mother India (1957)
The films he starred in during the 1960s brought him fame and reputation as a star. Sometimes, six or seven of his films would run together in theaters for more than 25 weeks, earning him the nickname “Jubilee Kumar”. He acted in many successful films which became popular at the box office. Some of these included Dhool Ka Phool (1959), Kanoon (1960), Gharana (1961), Aas Ka Panchhi (1961), Sasural (1961), Dil Ek Mandir (1963), Mere Mehboob (1963), Sangam (1964). Are included. , Aayi Milan Ki Bela (1964), Zindagi (1964), Arzoo (1965), and Sooraj (1966). He also acted in the Punjabi films Do Sher (1974) and Teri Meri Ikk Jindri (1975).
Rajendra Kumar on the poster of the film Do Sher (1974)
Television
Rajendra Kumar acted in the television shows Andaz (1995), in which he acted in a single episode, and Vansh (1995).
the creator
Except for The Train (1970), Rajendra Kumar exclusively made films starring his son in the lead role. The film Love Story (1981) which introduced Kumar Gaurav, proved to be a blockbuster.
Rajendra Kumar’s son Kumar Gaurav in the film Love Story (1981)
His next blockbuster as a producer was Naam (1986), starring his son Kumar Gaurav and Sanjay Dutt.
Awards, Honors, Achievements
- Rajendra Kumar was awarded Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1970.
- Rajendra Kumar was given the title of Distinguished Justice of the Peace and assumed the role of Honorary Magistrate.
- Rajendra received national honor from Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru was honored at the same time for his films Kanoon (Hindi) and Mehndi Rang Lagyo (Gujarati film).
- Rajendra Kumar was awarded the distinguished Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award for Excellence in 1999.
Death
Rajendra Kumar died of heart failure at his residence in Mumbai on 12 July 1999 at the age of 71. According to sources, due to falling hemoglobin he had undergone treatment in America for 10 months. Despite being given prescribed medicines, he reportedly did not take any which resulted in his condition worsening.
Facts/General Knowledge
- Rajendra Kumar used to be Raj Kapoor’s best friend and Rajendra’s son Kumar Gaurav was engaged to Raj’s daughter Reema. However, once the engagement broke, the friendship between the two veteran actors also broke.
Rajendra Kumar with his best friend Raj Kapoor
- In early 1949, Rajendra Kumar was offered a job as an assistant sub-inspector in Delhi, which he declined on the insistence of his friend Raj Kumar to pursue his dream of becoming an actor.
- Rajendra Kumar earned the nickname “Jubilee Kumar” due to the number of films reaching silver and golden jubilee status.
- Jubilee Kumar: The Life and Times of a Superstar, written by Seema Sonik Alimchand, is a biography of Rajendra Kumar.
- Rajendra Kumar used to smoke cigarettes and also liked to drink alcohol.
- Rajendra Kumar had a strange variety of pets which included a cow, six dogs, a monkey and a deer.
Rajendra Kumar with his pets on the cover of Times of India publication
- Rajendra liked playing tennis.
- While Rajendra Kumar’s career lasted only two decades, he acted in around 70 films.
- Although director HS Rawail tried to dissuade Rajendra Kumar from acting, he had tears in his eyes and told Rajendra that he felt very proud after watching Vachan (1955).
- Director Jiya Sarhadi once replaced Rajendra Kumar in a film and when Rajendra turned to him for help he “threw him out of his door”. Then in 1956, while working on a film with producer Mehboob Khan, whose director was Zia Sarhadi, Zia was fired in the same way he had fired Rajendra Kumar.
- A commemorative postage stamp with a face value of Rs was issued in 2013 to honor Rajendra Kumar Tuli. 5.
Rajendra Kumar Tuli on a commemorative postage stamp issued in 2013
Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn