United Nations/Aligarh, Jul 08, 2021, IANS
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condoled the death of Bollywood star Dilip Kumar who had an international following.
"We send our deep condolences to his family, his legions of fans throughout the world," Guterres's Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said on Wednesday.
In a sign of Kumar's sway beyond India, it was a Pakistani journalist who mentioned the actor's death to Dujarric at his daily briefing.
The 98-year-old actor's fandom spread across the world a" beyond South Asia and especially into the Middle East, Africa, Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean.
Kumar, who was born in pre-Independence Peshawar that is now in Pakistan, starred in over 60 films during his 54-year movie career and also produced movies.
He died on Wednesday in Mumbai.
AMU mourns death of Dilip Kumar
The Aligarh Muslim University fraternity mourned the demise of legendary Bollywood actor Yusuf Khan, better known as Dilip Kumar.
Dilip Kumar was also an ex-Court Member of the university. AMU had also conferred him with an Honorary Doctorate degree.
Extending his condolences on behalf of the AMU fraternity, Vice-Chancellor Prof Tariq Mansoor said, "I am saddened to learn of the passing of Dilip Kumar who was an institution and he left a huge body of work behind for filmmakers and actors to learn from. The legendary actor received Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the country's highest award in the art form". He was also awarded Padma Vibhushan for his services.
"The AMU elected him as Court Member in 1982 and conferred upon him the honourary Doctorate in 2002, recognising his exemplary services to art and cinema in a career spanning more than five decades," added the Vice-Chancellor.
Prof Mansoor further said, the thespian will always be remembered for shaping Indian cinema and setting a template of acting for generations to come.
Noted economist Meghnad Desai drew parallels between his films and newly-independent India's tryst with the mixed economy system in his book "Nehru's Hero Dilip Kumar, in the Life of India".
"Dilip sahib was a humanist and philanthropist with a personality that lived far beyond his screen appearances," said Prof Mansoor.
Dilip Kumar's acting style remained relevant for several decades and he was honoured with Filmfare Awards eight times. His intense performances also earned him the title of 'Tragedy King'.