On Valentine’s Day, remembering unfulfilled love stories of Bollywood’s Golden Triumvirate Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand-Entertainment News , Firstpost
All three Bollywood megastars suffered an ill-fate when it came to love, and had star-crossed love stories with leading ladies who were as big a name as their lovers.
Long before Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan formed the ‘Khan Triumvirate’ that would epitomise stardom in Bollywood for over three decades, the Hindi cinema saw, its first triumvirate in Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand, and Raj Kapoor who would rule the roost through the and 1950s and ’60s, with unparalleled repute and fame, that would have them go down history books.
With the demise of Dilip Kumar in July 2021, it was curtains on the ‘Golden Triumvirate’, and the end of a truly remarkable era. Unlike the Khans, these three superstars did not share a common last name or age but nevertheless, they had three things in common. First, they were all equally magnanimous and successful. Second, all three of them had Punjabi roots, with Kumar and Kapoor coming from Peshawar, and Dev Anand from Shakargarh; the Golden Triumvirate hailed from what is modern-day Punjab in Pakistan.
And last but not the least, all three of these megastars suffered an ill-fate when it came to love, and had star-crossed love stories with leading ladies who were as big a name as their lovers.
Dilip Kumar was in love with Madhubala, while Raj Kapoor had an affair with Nargis, and Dev Anand was smitten by Suraiya. Their love is a testament to the fact that sometimes circumstances corrode relationships and romance.
Kumar and Madhubala met on the sets Jwar Bhata [1944] but their romance started on the sets of Tarana [1951]. The two shared a phenomenal chemistry onscreen, with hits like Mughal-e-Azam and Sangdil, while their off-screen whirlwind romance was no secret. From movie premiers to parties and public gatherings, the stars were often inseparable, such much so that the film fraternity believed them to be married, without any formal rituals. However, Madhubala’s father, Ataullah Khan was against this relationship, as Madhubala was the sole earner in the family. Khan used to manage Madhubala’s finances and career, and wanted Kumar to act in his production house, which Kumar refused.
Followed by this, during the production of Naya Daur [1957], BR Chopra replaced Madhubala with Vyjayanthimala, because of her father’s refusal to let travel to Bhopal for the shoot as he did not want her to be alone with Kumar. Madhubala, who had already accepted an advance of Rs 30,000, was met with a lawsuit when her father was unable to pay the amount back. During the court case, Kumar testified for Chopra, and therefore against Madhubala’s father, which upset her. This was beginning of what would be the end of their relationship. Naya Daur became a massive success.
However, Kumar and Madhubala were yet to see their biggest success on the silver screen – K Asif’s magnum opus Mughal-e-Azam [1960], that is touted not only as Kumar and Madhubala’s best, but one the greatest films to ever be made in Indian cinema. Sadly enough though, all through the shooting of Mughal-e-Azam, Kumar and Madhubala would not even speak to each other, while they had to act as if they were madly in love. The duo had broken up in 1956 allegedly, while the film went on till 1959. This was the end of their torrid affair. Kumar married Saira Banu, while Madhubala married Kishore Kumar, who was madly in love with her, and thus married her despite knowing about her deteriorating health. She passed away in 1969, just nine years after marriage.
Moving onto Dev Anand and Suraiya, who met on sets of Vidya (1948), followed by which they starred in seven films together. Anand was immediately smitten by the singer and actress’ simplicity. Suraiya, however, needed a passionate, and straight-out-of-a-movie moment to realise her love for Anand, and she had it while filming the song ‘Kinare Kinare, Chale Jayenge’ from Vidya. While shooting the song, the boat they were in capsized, and Anand saved her from drowning, followed by which she told him, “If you hadn’t saved my life today, it would have ended,” to which he quietly replied, “If your life had ended so would have mine.” And so their clandestine love affair began.
However, the two were soon going to face repercussions of mindless religious bigotry. Anand was a Hindu, and Suraiya, a Muslim. Thus the latter’s family was firmly against the union, which forced the couple to come to the conclusion that they would elope from the sets of Jeet [1949] and get married, but fate had other plans. Suraiya’s maternal grandmother Badshah Begum found out about this, and dragged her home. The two continued to meet secretly on Suraiya’s terrace, until finally going their separate ways. The last film they did together was Do Sitare [1951], after which Suraiya was forbidden from working with Anand, who was deeply hurt by her lack of courage, and firmly believed that there was only one religion, and that was of love.
Suraiya, on the other hand, confessed in an interview, “I was afraid for him. In retrospect, I don’t think anything would have happened if I’d been bold enough. But I was terrified of my grandmother. And was heartbroken.” She never married or fell in love again while a shattered Anand fell in love with Kalpana Kartik, on the sets of Taxi Driver [1954], and married her. However, he never shied away from speaking about his love for Suraiya, and gave many interviews post their separation, in which he spoke about her with absolute fondness.
As for Raj Kapoor and Nargis, the duo’s romance was probably doomed from the very beginning. Raj was already married to Krishna Kapoor and had five children. It was love at first sight for Kapoor and Nargis on the sets of Andaz [1948]. Rishi Kapoor, in his autobiography Khullam Khulla, wrote, “He was also a man in love – at the time, unfortunately, with someone other than my mother. His girlfriend was the leading lady of some of his biggest hits of the time, including Aag [1948], Barsaat [1949], and Awara [1951].”
They were madly in love with each other, and Nargis was prepared to marry him despite knowing that he had a wife and kids. However, Raj refused to leave them, which was made clear to Nargis in the mid-1950s, after which they separated and never worked together. They had been together personally and professionally for nine years so naturally, the separation shattered both of them. Nargis slipped into depression, and was said to have let gone of her will to live. However, she met Sunil Dutt on the sets of Mother India [1957], who saved her from fire on the sets of the film. Nargis wrote in her personal diary, “If it were not for him, perhaps I would have ended my life before 8 March. For I alone know the turmoil that was going through me. ‘I want you to live,’ he said, and I felt I had to live. Begin all over again.” Nargis and Sunil Dutt got married in 1958.
Nargis and Raj Kapoor
Raj was grief-stricken after finding out about her marriage, and saw it as an act of betrayal on Nargis’ end. He was heartbroken, shocked, and lost in despair, regarding which Krishna Kapoor said in an interview, “Night after night, he would come home drunk and collapse in the bathtub weeping.”
Alas, this was the tale of Bollywood’s Golden Triumvirate and their broken hearts. Some found love again, while others perished in heartbreak, but on this Valentine’s Day, their love stories are a testament to the fact “The course of true love, never did run smooth,” and also perhaps that love and tragedy can never exist singularly. While there is nothing foolish than to romanticise heartbreak, the unfortunate truth lies in the idea that loving has always come at a cost in this world.
Takshi Mehta is a freelance journalist and writer. She firmly believes that we are what we stand up for, and thus you’ll always find her wielding a pen.
