Ashok Kumar (actor)
Ashok Kumar , actually Kumudlal Ganguly ( Hindi , अशोक कुमार, Aśok Kumār, born October 13, 1911 in Bhagalpur , Bihar , † December 10, 2001 in Mumbai ) was an Indian film actor, film director and film producer.
Life
Ashok Kumar is the son of a lawyer and studied at Allahabad University , where he met his future brother-in-law Sashadhar Mukerji . This eventually persuaded him to come to Mumbai and work with him as a laboratory assistant at Bombay Talkies . With the hope of becoming a film director, Ashok Kumar (later affectionately called Dadamoni ) accepted the request, but was used as an actor by Himansu Rai - director, producer and head of Bombay Talkies.
Ashok Kumar first appeared in a film in 1936. Together with Rai's wife Devika Rani , he starred in a number of films from the 1930s, including his second film, the successful social drama Achhut Kanya (1936) and in Nirmala (1938), both directed by the German Franz Osten . He became the star of the early Bollywood Hindi film. His greatest commercial success was the film Kismet (1943) by Gyan Mukherjee . He lost his position as the most successful film to Sholay in the 1970s . He was able to build on this success with Mahal (1949, with Madhubala ) and in Bimal Roys Bandini (1963, with Nutan and Dharmendra ). In the 1950s, he starred in crime films, often with his trademark cigarette in hand. He performed with the stars Dev Anand , Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar . Kumar was active as an actor until the 1990s and starred in a total of 280 films.
In 1959 he was awarded a Sangeet Natak Akademi Award . Ashok Kumar won two Filmfare Awards for Best Actor, 1962 and 1969, and received the Filmfare Award / Lifetime Achievement in 1995. In 1989, Kumar received the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award . His brother is the film actor and playback singer Kishore Kumar .
Filmography (selection)
- 1943: Kismet
- 1949: Mahal
- 1952: Bewafa
- 1953: Parineeta
- 1956: Ek-Hi-Rasta
- 1958: Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi
- 1959: Dhool Ka Phool
- 1961: Dharmputra
- 1963: Gumrah
- 1963: Bandini
- 1967: Jewel Thief
- 1969: Aradhana
- 1971: Guddi
- 1972: Pakeezah
- 1975: Chhoti Si Baat
- 1975: Mili
- 1980: Khubsoorat
- 1985: Tawaif
Web links
- Ashok Kumar in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- detailed biography (Engl.)
- Memories of the 90-year-old actor
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Kumar, Ashok |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Kumudlal Ganguly (real name); Dadamoni; Ashok Kumar Ganguly; Padmashree Ashok Kumar |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Indian film actor, film director and film producer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 13, 1911 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Bhagalpur , Bihar, India |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 10, 2001 |
| Place of death | Mumbai , India |