Last Updated: December 29, 2022, 12:26 IST
The legendary actor, whose real name was Jatin Khanna, was born on December 29, 1942
Rajesh Khanna made his film debut in 1966 with Chetan Anand’s Aakhri Khat, the first of the many smash hits he delivered in his career.
While we have quite a few actors, who are referred to as ‘superstars’ today, the word was first coined in India for the late actor Rajesh Khanna. Undeniably, the first superstar of Hindi cinema, Rajesh Khanna’s stardom was unrivalled during the late 60s. The legendary actor, whose real name was Jatin Khanna, was born on December 29, 1942, and he was popularly known in the industry as Kaka.
Rajesh Khanna made his film debut in 1966 with Chetan Anand’s Aakhri Khat, the first of the many smash hits he delivered in his career. From 1969 to 1971, he delivered 15 consecutive hits, which is when people began referring to him as a superstar. On his birth anniversary, let us take a stroll down memory lane and explore what some of his female co-stars had to say about him.
According to his ex-wife Dimple Kapadia, Rajesh Khanna was known to have an introverted nature, and he became more and more silent with time. In an interview with a media portal after their separation, Dimple said, “He neither shared his happiness nor sorrow and I was very scared to give him any kind of help. I just used to be there.” Mumtaz, whom Rajesh Khanna considered his favourite co-star, once said that he was not very friendly and mostly kept things to himself.
As per Hema Malini, Rajesh Khanna was a temperamental person, who kept himself confined. Zeenat Aman once said that he was reserved during their first film Ajnabee but opened up a bit by the time they did their last film together – Jaana. However, Asha Parekh highlighted that the late legend was shy and reserved in the initial stage of his career, but he became expressive after attaining success.
