Ashok Kumar

This article is about the Indian actor. For other uses, see Ashok Kumar (disambiguation).

Ashok Kumar
Kumar c. 1941
Born
Kumudlal Ganguly

(1911-10-13)13 October 1911
Bhagalpur, Bengal Presidency, British India
(present-day Bihar, India)
Died10 December 2001(2001-12-10) (aged 90)
Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Other namesDadamoni
Occupation(s)Actor, producer, painter, singer
Years active1934–1997
WorksFilmography
Spouse
Shobha Devi
​
(m. 1935)​
Children4, including Preeti Ganguly
RelativesSee Ganguly family
See Mukherjee-Samarth family
Awards
Honours

Ashok Kumar (born Kumudlal Ganguly; 13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema. He was considered the first big superstar [1]of Hindi cinema as well as the first lead actor to play an anti-hero.[2][3] He also became the first star to reinvent himself, enjoying a long and hugely successful career as a character actor.[4] He was a member of the cinematic Ganguly family.[5] He was honoured in 1988 with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest national award for cinema artists,[6] by the Government of India. He also received the Padma Bhushan in 1999 for his contributions to Indian cinema.[6]

  1. ^ "Reluctant Actor To Bollywood's First Superstar, Tracing The Journey Of Legendary Ashok Kumar". News18. 26 December 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  2. ^ "When Ashok Kumar's wedding was called off because he became an actor: 'It was considered disreputable those days'". 13 October 2022.
  3. ^ "Movie buffs and time machines". The Hindu. 5 October 2018.
  4. ^ "Remembering 'Dadamoni' Ashok Kumar: A perfectionist actor, homoeopath & 'wacky' gentleman". 10 December 2018.
  5. ^ Handa, Ekta (10 December 2018). "Remembering 'Dadamoni' Ashok Kumar: A perfectionist actor, homoeopath & 'wacky' gentleman". ThePrint. Retrieved 3 October 2022.
  6. ^ a b "Ashok Kumar: Lesser Known Facts". The Times of India. Retrieved 3 October 2022.