Kader Khan Indian cinema's versatile genius who attained glittering success as a master comedian

Kader Khan made his Bollywood debut in the 1973 Rajesh Khanna-starrer Daag and go onto feature in over 300 Bollywood movies, etching his name as one of the greatest comic actors to have graced the industry.

Image-Kader Khan (Courtesy-Wikipedia)

Indian cinema has seen many stalwarts who enthralled Bollywood fans with their superlative acting prowess. We had mega stars of all kinds - the Angry Young man in Amitabh Bacchan, Dharmendra - the Ultimate Macho Man, Shahrukh Khan - The King of Romance and Akshay Kumar - the Super Khiladi. Each superstar had their own signature style which made them top box office draws. However, only a select few had the pedigree of being masters at most of the acting genres...One such immensely gifted actor, who was brilliant at both comedy and playing the villain's role was Kader Khan. Kader's entry into Bollywood was more accidental than planned. A person holding a civil engineering degree and quite content at teaching would have never dreamed about landing himself as an actor in tinsel town. It was none other than the melodramatic King Dilip Kumar who first took notice of Kader's acting abilities in a play and gave him his first break. Rest as they say is all history. Kader would debut in the 1973 Rajesh Khanna-starrer Daag and go onto feature in over 300 Bollywood movies, etching his name as one of the greatest comic actors to have graced the industry. Besides his acting credentials, Kader was an ace dialogue and script writer, penning down some impact full dialogues for movies directed by eminent directors like Manmohan Desai and Prakash Mehra to name a few. Kader's natural flair and mastery over Urdu made him an exceptionally creative script writer. He wrote powerful dialogues for super hit movies like Sharaabi, Coolie, Lawaaris, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar and Amar Akbar Anthony, besides writing screenplays for films starring Amitabh Bachchan like Agneepath and Naseeb. Such was his command at comedy that some of his notable works portraying villainous characters often went into the back burner. Very few of us remember that the brilliant comedian was a master at playing the bad man in many box office hits of 70s and 80s. In the 90s, Kader Khan formed a great on screen chemistry with Govinda, Shakti Kapoor and Karishma Kapoor; starring in most of David Dhawan's blockbuster masala comedy movies..The formula was a roaring success at the box office... The common man identified himself through some written scripts, peppy dance numbers and brilliant acting delivery which often narrated telling social issues faced by the 'Aam Aadmi'. Kader added that much required punch on serious subjects with his unbeatable humor and perfect comic timing. When we talk about the famous Jodis of Bollywood, many Actor-Actress' duo ring an instant bell. Raj Kapoor-Nargis, Amitabh-Rekha, Sri Devi-Anil Kapoor, Shahrukh-Kajol pairs are revered as the evergreen pairs who sizzled together on screen. However, if one were to specifically talk about Comedy, the Govinda-Kader Jodi would go hands down as the number one pair. Kader Khan showed his prowess and pedigree at comedy in an era where the likes of Paresh Rawal, Satish Kaushik, Shakti Kapoor and Johnny Lever left the audiences to splits with their brilliant comic timing. It is notable that Kader held his own as a master comedian with his hilarious facial expressions and trademark dialogue delivery. At a time when the Khan troika ruled the roost in Bollywood, Govinda-Kader combo had a loyal fan base of their own with Raja Babu,Coolie No.1, Hero No.1, Saajan Chale Sasural, Ankheen, Aunty No.1 and Bade Miyan Chote Miyan turning out to be money spinners at the box office. In a stellar career spanning almost 5 decades, Kader Khan had the rare distinction of being one of the few actors to share screen space with Bollywood's leading men of their eras -Amitabh Bachhan, Jeetendra, Anil Kapoor and Govinda. At the ripe old age of 81, Kader Khan passed away on Tuesday after battling prolonged illness, leaving a big void in Indian cinema. However the legacy of Kader Khan courtesy his notable contribution to India cinema shall stay till eternity. Kader Khan's life is a learning lesson for many that sustained hardwork, dedication and a burning desire to succeed can catapult a human being to the pinnacle of their chosen paths.