This Actor Faced Poverty, Loved Hema Malini & Met a Tragic End

Every actor has his own pathway to stardom. A person’s determination along with the burning passion is bound to face hurdles along the journey they are likely to encounter. In the case of this actor’s story, he faced financial constraints that forced him to liquidate his investments, but later did manage to recuperate his losses. This actor was known for his ‘jack of all trades’ approach that allowed him to effortlessly step into the shoes of any characters.

This is the story of one of India's acting legends Sanjeev Kumar. He has won two National Awards for Best Actor among several accolades that adorn his hall of fame.

Hanif Zaveri and Sumant Bata penned down Sanjeev Kumar's biography titled as ‘An Actor’s Actor’ encompassing his entire life which published in 2021. The book entails his early life and the challenges he faced.

Sanjeev had a desire to pursue his career further by investing in himself, but the expense of the acting school Filmalaya that was run by Producer Sashadhar Mukerjee was too high, especially given the financial constraints the family faced at the moment.

He shared a strong connection with her mother who saw the guilt on his face and decided to assist her son by selling some of her jewelry. Kumar was able to pay for the fees, acquire the skills, and become a star. He worked hard to pay back the money and bought her the jewelry as well. 

Why This Actor Stayed Unmarried?

Hema Malini and Sanjeev Kumar fell In love sometime around the year 1973. They even had thought about getting married. The family of Sanjeev Kumar even agreed to go to the actress’s house so that they could sort out the details of the marriage. But when Kumar and his mother asked Hema Malini to give up acting and also not work after the wedding, it became non negotiable. 

Later, actress Sulakshana Pandit did ask him out but he turned it down rather politely. 

It has been said that Sanjeev Kumar was widely regarded as a man who was believed to be under some family curse which brought tragedy to each generation of men. The males in his lineage suffered the loss of their fathers at a very young age. Because of such uncertainty he opted to never marry because in his head if he did, and had children, he would end up bringing another tragedy into the family.

At 47, an actor suffered a fatal attack after experiencing heart problems and bypass surgery, leading to his unfortunate death. However, it is interesting to note that the last 10 films he did get post-released after his death were ‘Professor ki Padosan', which was released in 1993.