Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan has said Indian cinema is incomplete without film actor Dilip Kumar. The 98-year-old film actor passed away on Wednesday morning in Mumbai.
Chouhan said he was such a great actor that when he played any role in a film it did not look like acting. He lived every character. “I pay tributes to him,” the chief minister said.
Culture, tourism and spirituality minister Usha Thakur, principal secretary, culture Sheo Shekhar Shukla and director, culture Aditi Kumar Tripathi condoled the demise of the legendary film actor. They say it is an irreparable loss to the cinema world. They prayed to God to grant peace to the departed soul and strength to the bereaved family to bear the loss.
The state government awarded Dilip Kumar with Rashtriya Kishore Kumar Samman in 2014. Kumar had been a member of the Rajya Sabha. He was considered one of the finest actors of his era and known as the 'Tragedy King' due to his tragic roles. He was also honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest honour of Indian films.
Dilip Kumar was born on December 11, 1922, in Peshawar (Pakistan). His birth name was Muhammad Yusuf Khan. His father had settled in Mumbai, where he started working in Hindi films. He had been ill for almost a decade. He was also honoured with Padma Vibhushan and Padma Bhushan. He acted in more than 70 films in his career.