Kishore Kumar was and will always be regarded as one of the greatest and most influential singers in the history of modern Indian music, who also left his mark in the acting world. However, he once shared his true feelings about acting. The legendary singer said that he was conned into acting. Scroll below for the deets.
Kumar’s original name was Abhas Kumar, and he started his cinema career as a chorus singer at Bombay Talkies. He was greatly inspired by Hollywood actor-singer Danny Kaye, and in addition, Kumar respected Rabindranath Tagore and singer KL Saigal. Some notable movies starring Kumar include Jhumroo, Half Ticket, Mr. X in Bombay, Padosan, Bombay to Goa, and more.
In a throwback interview with Pritish Nandy, Kishore Kumar revealed he hated acting and did several things to get out of it. The singer even claimed that he was conned into doing it. Kumar said, “I was conned into it. I only wanted to sing. Never to act. But somehow, thanks to peculiar circumstances, I was persuaded to act in the movies. I hated every moment of it and tried virtually every trick to get out of it.”
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He explained, “I muffed my lines, pretended to be crazy, shaved my head off, played difficult, began yodelling in the midst of tragic scenes, told Meena Kumari what I was supposed to tell Bina Rai in some other film – but they still wouldn’t let me go. I screamed, ranted, went cuckoo. But who cared? They were just determined to make me a star.” He also said that he did not want to be an actor because Kumar’s brother, Ashok Kumar, was a great hero.
Further sharing about his acting days, Kishore Kumar said, “Of course I did. I was the biggest draw after Dilip Kumar. There were so many films I was doing in those days that I had to run from one set to the other, changing on the way. Imagine me. My shirts flying off, my trousers falling off, my wig coming off while I’m running from one set to the other.” He continued, “Very often I would mix up my lines and look angry in a romantic scene or romantic in the midst of a fierce battle. It was terrible, and I hated it. It evoked nightmares of school. Directors were like school teachers. Do this. Do that. Don’t do this. Don’t do that. I dreaded it. That’s why I would often escape.”
Be it acting or playback singing, Kishore Kumar was versatile in them both. The legend left a big void in the world of cinema and music when he passed away in 1987.
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The post When Kishore Kumar Claimed He Was Conned Into Acting: “I Screamed, Ranted, Went Cuckoo” appeared first on Koimoi.
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