ISLAMABAD: The death anniversary of popular Pakistani film actor Waheed Murad was observed on Wednesday across the country and abroad as his fans and fun lovers remembered their hero whose work continues to be a favorite for them.
Waheed Murad, was a Pakistani film actor, producer and script writer, famous for his charming expressions, attractive personality, tender voice and unusual talent for acting.
He is considered as one of the most famous and influential actors of South Asia, often referred to as “Chocolate Hero”.
Born in Karachi, Sindh, he started his film career as cameo in 1959 in the film Saathi when he was 21 years old. His naughty facial gestures, bold romanticism and alluring performance style during picturization of songs made him immensely popular.
One of his films is Armaan, which was produced by him, made a pivotal impact on the sub-continental film industry such that the Pakistani film industry was considered as the rising star and the film made him a superstar overnight.
He won many awards for recognition of his services to the film industry while in November 2010, after a long period of 27 years after his death, the Pakistani government awarded him with Sitara-e-Imtiaz, the third highest honor and civilian award by the State of Pakistan, given in the fields of literature, arts, sports, medicine, or science.
Murad produced eleven films under his father’s established ‘Film Art’. He was the youngest film producer in the industry at that time. Most of his produced films were either Golden Jubilee or Silver Jubilee.
During the 1960s and early 1970s, he produced films like Insaan badalta hai (1961) (his first film as producer), Armaan (1966), Ehsaan (1967), Naseeb apna apna (1970) and Mastana mahi (Punjabi film of 1971). However, after Mastana Mahi he produced no film except Hero which was produced in the 1980s and was released after his death.
Murad’s acting style has the legacy of being taught in Indian and Pakistani film institutions. He is considered as one of the pioneering Rock n’ Roll stars of Pakistan. His fans term him as the cultural icon of the Pakistani Film Industry.
