“Bharat Kumar” awarded with highest honorary Dadasaheb Phalke Award

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Dadasaheb Phalke Award

India was politically and physically free from British Raj but in their minds the West was still the best for education, jobs and everything that you can think of. The Perfect West. But then an Indian settled in West took an authoritative stance, was acting like West and cursing India by saying that Indians find themselves comfortable only where there is poverty as they themselves are poverty stricken while here in West we all are well off, happy and it is an abuse to be called Indian origin and this ‘mimic-man’ doesn’t have anything to do with that nation, they have landed on the moon and you are still stuck here in the ditch, there’s nothing to be proud of India.

Manoj Kumar to Making of Bharat Kumar

To this a Indian by heart in his convincing voice, unfaltering presence and authoritative yet accurate dialogue delivery assertively replied to this, it was India who gave Zero to the world… and you might discriminate on the basis of color but we don’t, we just know how to love everyone. You might have won us over, but we won hearts. And these are the people I salute, I pay my respect too…

The song was sung by Mahendra Kapoor and written by Indeevar, but Manoj Kumar made his strong vocal and authoritative yet humble presence in the movies thus, subjectivised the brain drained Indians to make them realize the worth of India and covertly urged them to come back to India and utilize their assets for the development of self and nation. This song from the movie “Purab and Paschim” was just one out of many songs. Manoj Kumar contributed to the nation in his own manner, by becoming the face of positive India, which can stand on its own without being dependent on West. Alongside, he unveiled certain flaws in the Indian society in order to let the country develop all the more, though he entirely cannot be credited for this but his presence asked for it. For this reason, he was called ‘Bharat Kumar’.

Apart from patriotic movies, he did various thrillers, romance and social movies. However, he quit acting after appearing in the 1995 movie Maidan-e-Jung, and directed a patriotic movie Jai Hind in 1999 but was a flop.

Nevertheless, the “Bharat Kumar” has won varied awards like Padma Shri in 1992, Filmfare Lifetime Achievement in’99, National Kishore Kumar Award in 2008, National Raj Kapoor Award in 2010 and many other Lifetime Achievement Awards over the span of two decades.

However, this week Manoj Kumar got the highest award in the Indian Cinema, i.e. Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his lifetime contribution to the cinema, with a gold lotus, 1 million and a shawl. His name was nominated by eminent jury members like Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhonsle, Neel Mukesh, Anup Jalota and Salim Khan.

After receiving an honorary award at the age of 79, he in an interview with India TV, said that “Anandam, Anandam”, awards motivate and for him his work was never a business but “tapsya, sadhna” and he expects to work towards with dedication and also praised PM Narendra Modi.

A Veteran Actor like him who worked for the betterment deserves respect and honour which he was duly awarded with.