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Few months back, Midday, a Mumbai newspaper ran a photograph of a bearded man greeting guests at a wedding. They wanted the readers to guess the identity of the man, and few could guess it right.
It was Rajesh Khanna, once called `God` in Bollywood.
His last attempt to make a come back with Zeenat Aman didn’t interest any, and Rajesh Khanna is back in his loneliness finding consolation in memories and his bottle of scotch.
But the truth is that no star before or after Rajesh Khanna has got the kind of adulation, which he got from millions of fans. Two of his films, 'Aradhana' (1969) and 'Do Raaste' (1969) even ran simultaneously and completed golden jubilees within weeks of each other! The nondescript Gurkha face of 'Aakhri Khat' (1966), 'Baharon ke Sapne' (1967) and 'Raaz' (1967) was transformed into the most adored face in the industry. He ended the Shammi Kapoor era with his special appearance in the Shammi Kapoor starrer 'Andaz' (1971), to the tune of 'Zindagi Ek Safar Hai Suhana'.
Born in Amritsar, on 29th December 1942, Rajesh Khanna?s real name was Jatin. Kaka, as he was called by friends and his mother Lilavati, went on to create unprecedented magic with 'Khamoshi' (1969), 'Kati Patang' (1970), 'Aan Milo Sajna' (1970), 'Safar' (1970) and 'Sacha Jhootha' (1970). Labelled the superstar Rajesh had a major fan following mostly among women who swooned at his name, voice,the shake of his head and crinkling of his eyes.
His popularity continued unabated as he went on delivering superlative and sensitive performances in films like 'Anand' (1970), Safar(1970), 'Amar Prem' (1971) and 'Bawarchi' (1972). When Rajesh Khanna married Dimple Kapadia, the girl Raj Kapoor had signed for a youthful romance opposite his son Rishi Kapoor in 'Bobby', there were reports of girl fans attempting suicide. The overnight marriage remained the talk of the town for months.
However, his popularity declined after his marriage. Exactly like he had done to Shammi Kapoor in 'Andaz' (1971), Amitabh Bachchan routed him in 'Namak Haram' (1973). Interestingly, Amit had the smaller role in the Rajesh Khanna starrer 'Anand', but showed sparks of his talent in the death scene which belonged to Khanna. 'Namak Haram' saw him beatins Rajesh Khanna hollow. History repeated itself. Amit was the winner. But the talented Rajesh Khanna survived for a while till age and politics forced him into a pragmatic retirement. His friend Rishi Kapoor has recently brought him back with a restrained and polished performance in 'Aa Ab Laut Chalen'.
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