This Rajesh Khanna Playlist Will Keep You Humming All Day Long
Celebrating Rajesh Khanna’s birth anniversary with this unforgettable Kishore Kumar jukebox.
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Rajesh Khanna was India’s first superstar. He was the original, and he remains to be the classic. He gave 15 consecutive solo hit films between 1969 to 1971 and his mega stardom was defined by nothing less than sheer fan mania.
Rajesh Khanna gave Kishore Kumar’s versatile voice an endearing face. His on-screen persona was made hugely popular by the incredible music from his super hit films, that we sing and hum even today. In fact, Kishore da and R D Burman were his closest friends in Bollywood.
Some of his best performances live on with these melodious tunes from Kati Patang (1970), Haathi Mere Saathi (1971), Mere Jeevan Saathi (1972), Anand (1971) and Aradhana (1969), to name a few.
When Rajesh Khanna decided to surprise the 15 year old Dimple Kapadia with his proposal for marriage, female fans across the country were in mourning and many even attempted suicide. The star married a starlet, despite which his fan following only increased.
Tanuja, Sharmila Tagore, Rekha, Mumtaz, Hema Malini and Asha Parekh were his leading ladies in some of the best films of his career.
The iconic actor’s daughter Twinkle Khanna shared a personal photograph with her father on Twitter in his memory. The father-daughter duo share the same date of birth. Twinkle turns 41 today and Kaka would have been 72 this year.
The sensuous melody Roop Tera Mastana from Aradhana, starring Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore, made history in Hindi cinema as the first single-take song.
There is one iconic film that Rajesh Khanna turned down, that you probably didn’t know about. Director Shekhar Kapur had offered Mr India to him, before appraoching Anil Kapoor. The mega star just couldn’t relate to the character of the invisible hero and the part was given to Anil Kapoor.
Rajesh Khanna was the highest paid actor from 1970-79 and shared the honour with Amitabh Bachchan from 1980-87. Professional insecurities between the two actors were widely talked about at the time.
Even though the super star had a 100% success rate with Mumtaz, delivering eight blockbuster films with her, Hema Malini was the one he was paired with the most. They were cast as the leading pair in 15 films together.
Affectionately known as Kaka by friends and fans, Rajesh Khanna was quite the trend setter in terms of general fashion, with his unique hairstyles and guru kurtas.
Kaka might not be around anymore, but his spirit lives on with these gorgeous melodies. So, let’s play on.