Dilip Kumar Birth Anniversary: 6 rejections which could have changed the Indian cinema

One of the greatest contributors to Indian cinema is the legendary actor Dilip Kumar, popularly known as the tragedy king of Bollywood. On his 102nd birth anniversary, have a look at films he regrets not doing

Late actor Dilip Kumar left an indelible mark with his skill of acting in the history of Indian cinema. Actors like him are born once in a century and are forever remembered for their craft. The same was the case of the tragedy king, with a penchant for portraying gloomy roles, the actor breathed sadness into a character with his embodiment. Although the actor was also very selective about the roles that he did, because of his nit-picking he later regretted rejecting some films which turned out to be cult classics. On the occasion of his 102nd birth anniversary, we have brought a list of all the films that the late actor regretted not doing:

Films that Dilip Kumar regrets rejecting

 
Zanjeer (1973)
The Kohinoor of Indian cinema rejected the role of Vijay- the 'angry young man' because he thought the role was not layered and was only uni-dimensional. Because the character was not multi-dimensional, the late actor felt that the character did not have any scope for performance. Zanjeer proved to be a blockbuster at the box office and became a turning point in Amitabh Bachchan's life. It was also the first collaboration of the iconic writer duo Salim-Javed. The film brought popularity for Big B whose career was sinking and made him an overnight star.

Baghban (2003)
Dilip Kumar was the first choice for this film directed by Ravi Chopra. The film was planned by Ravi's father B.R. Chopra who narrated the film to Dilip Kumar years ago during the shoot of Ravi's directorial debut. Dilip Kumar liked the idea but he felt that no modern-day actress had the skill or acting prowess to act next to him. He further mentioned that he couldn't do the film as both Meena Kumari and Madhubala were dead and Rakhee had taken a break. Although, after the film's release, Dilip realised the importance of the role he had let go of.

Pyaasa (1957)
Dilip Kumar was approached for the lead role of the sad poet in Guru Dutt's Pyaasa because of his capability to portray intense and tragic roles with conviction. However, the actor did not take on the role because he thought the character was too similar to his then-recent release Devdas (1955). Well, this is not the end of it, there's more plot to Dilip Kumar's connection with Pyaasa. Yasser Usman's book about Guru Dutt presents a different narrative of the story. 

Baiju Bawra (1952)
The legendary actor regrets declining this film directed by Vijay Bhatt. It is considered one of the best films of Indian cinema. The actor was replaced by Bhushan Kumar in this film. Meena Kumari also starred in the film.

Sholay (1975)
Dilip Kumar, the tragedy king of Bollywood, was the first choice of Thakur in Salim-Javed's 1975 action-drama film Sholay. But, the actor declined the role, saying, that it lacked variety. The role then went on to Sanjeev Kumar who had worked with Dilip Kumar in the 1968 film Sunghursh. Sanjeev Kumar accepted the role of Thakur with open arms.
 
Sangam (1964)
Raj Kapoor had approached Dilip Kumar for his film Sangam. But, the latter had refused the role citing the reason for being done badly in the 1949 film Andaz starring Nargis, Raj Kapoor, and Dilip Kumar. Despite having a meaty role, the actor was not willing to work with Kapoor again. Raj Kapoor also gave Kumar the choice between Sunder and Gopal but nothing worked. 

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