Dilip Kumar: Life in a timeline

Mumbai, July 7  Dilip Kumar’s life is nothing short of a beautiful film, replete with every colour of life. From his birth in Peshawar to becoming the First Khan of Bollywood, the screen legend’s life is an inspiration to anyone who dares to dream.

Presenting Dilip Kumar’s life in a timeline.

1922
Born as Mohammed Yusuf Khan in Peshawar, North-West Frontier Province, British India to Lala Ghulam Sarwar Khan and Ayesha Begum on December 11.

1944
Makes his acting debut in “Jwar Bhata”, directed by Amiya Chakravarty, with the screen name Dilip Kumar.

1947
Tastes first major box office success, “Jugnu”, co-starring Noor Jahan and directed by Shaukat Hussain Rizvi.

1949
First breakthrough role in Mehboob Khan’s “Andaz”, co-starring Raj Kapoor and Nargis.

1951
Rumoured to fall in love with actress Madhubala during the shoot of “Tarana”.

1955
Release of career-defining film, Bimal Roy’s “Devdas” alongside Vyjayanthimala and Suchitra Sen.

1960
Featured in K. Asif’s epic historical drama “Mughal-e-Azam” as Prince Salim, his career defining role, alongside Madhubala and Prithviraj Kapoor. “Kohinoor” co-starring Meena Kumari also opens in the same year.

1961
Turns producer with the self-starring “Gunga Jumna”. Broadly inspired by Mehboob Khan’s “Mother India”, the Nitin Bose directorial was allegedly ghost-directed and ghost-edited by Dilip Kumar, according to unconfirmed rumours. The film starring the actor with his brother Nasir Khan and Vyjayanthimala was the highest-grossing Bollywood film of 1961.

1966
Marriage with actress Saira Banu, 22 years younger than him.

1980
Appointed honorary Sheriff of Mumbai.

1981
Marriage with Hyderabad-based Asma Sahiba , or Asma Rehman. The same year marked his comeback to Bollywood after a five-year break, with Manoj Kumar’s “Kranti”.

1983
Divorce with Asma Rehman

1991
Honoured with Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award in India.

1994
Honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India’s highest award in the field of cinema.

1998
Honoured with Nishan-e-Imtiaz, the highest civilian award of Pakistan.

1998
Release of his last Hindi film Qila, directed by Umesh Mehra and starring Dilip Kumar in a dual role. The film also had Rekha, Mamta Kulkarni and Mukul Dev.

2014
The thespian’s autobiography “The Substance And The Shadow” is published.

2015
Honoured with Padma Vibhushan, the second-highest civilian award in India.

2020
His younger brothers Aslam Khan and Ehsan Khan pass away owing to Covid.

2021, Dilip Kumar passes away at a Mumbai hospital around 7.30 am on July 7. He is cremated with state honours at Juhu Qabrastan, Santacruz, Mumbai around 5 pm The same day.