{"id":1259,"date":"2016-07-09T00:00:59","date_gmt":"2016-07-08T18:30:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/?p=1259"},"modified":"2019-07-09T11:41:25","modified_gmt":"2019-07-09T06:11:25","slug":"sanjeev-kumar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/learningandcreativity.com\/silhouette\/sanjeev-kumar\/","title":{"rendered":"Sanjeev Kumar – The Actor Who Rose Above The ‘Hero’"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Sanjeev<\/p>\n

It is hard to slot Sanjeev Kumar. You can\u2019t simply call him a romantic hero \u2013 although he did quite a few lover boy roles very successfully, sample Manchali, Seeta Aur Geeta.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Aandhi\"

Suchitra Sen and Sanjeev Kumar in Aandhi<\/p><\/div>\n

You can\u2019t simply say he excelled as the mature hero \u2013 although his performances as the middle-aged lonely hotel manager (Aandhi<\/em><\/a>), the ailing singer and father of five children (Parichay<\/em>), the guilt-ridden 50+ industrialist who sets out to track down the love of his youth days (Mausam<\/em>), the mutilated, revenge-seeking Thakur (Sholay<\/em>) are unsurpassed.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t say he was a tragic hero, because he made you crack up with his uncanny comic timing, remember the much harassed double Ashok in the comedy of errors Angoor,<\/em>\u00a0the cigar-smoking ex-colonel of Biwi O Biwi<\/em> or the flirtatious boss in Pati Patni Aur Woh<\/em>?<\/p>\n

The sheer versatility of Sanjeev Kumar, (born Harihar Jethalal Jariwala), outpaces all his contemporaries. Other actors of his times had their own niche and style \u2013 the action hero Dharmendra, the eternal lover Rajesh Khanna, the angry young man Amitabh Bachchan, the dancing star Jeetendra. But try and label Sanjeev Kumar, you will end up creating such a long description that you\u2019d better not try.<\/p>\n

\"Sanjeev

Sanjeev Kumar and Jaya Bhaduri played out all kinds of different character combinations<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cHe was never a hero. He was a brilliant actor and few directors could use him optimally,\u201d observes film historian and archivist SMM Ausaja<\/a>. \u201cAandhi, Mausam, Aap Ki Kasam, Trishul, Angoor, Pati Patni Aur Woh, Satyakam, Jani Dushman, Swarg Narak<\/em>\u2026 so many memorable films. But I feel he was best with Jaya Bhaduri.\u201d<\/p>\n

From among his several costars, ranging from Hema Malini to Sharmila Tagore, from Raakhee to Vidya Sinha, Suchitra Sen to Hema Malini, Sanjeev Kumar experimented the most with his female lead and bosom pal Jaya Bhaduri\u00a0(Bachchan). These two superbly talented actors played out all kinds of relationships on screen \u2013 husband-and-wife (Koshish<\/em>), father-in-law and daughter-in-law (Sholay<\/em>), lovers (Anamika<\/em>), father-daughter (Parichay<\/em>), the multifarious 9-character role in Naya Din Nayi Raat,<\/em>\u00a0ending up as the doctor and patient who hesitatingly comfort each other on finding that their respective spouses are having an affair (Silsila<\/em>).<\/p>\n

Meri bheegi bheegi si<\/strong><\/em> (Anamika<\/em>, 1973) – RD Burman \/ Majrooh Sultanpuri \/ Kishore Kumar. This tune was first used by RD Burman in the Bengali superhit non-film number Mone pore Ruby Roy\u00a0<\/em>sung by himself. The song became a cult song for the youth.<\/span><\/p>\n