PESHAWAR - The 91st birthday of legendary Indian film actor, Yousaf Khan commonly known as Dilip Kumar, celebrated at his ancestral city Peshawar, on Wednesday. On this occasion, a cake was cut during a ceremony organized by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Culture Heritage Council (CHC) at Peshawar Press Club, which was attended by a large number of Dilip Kumar's fans, writers, actors, lawyers and locals. On the occasion, Advisor to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Sorang Singh, Bobi Singh from United Kingdom, CHC Chairman Shakeel Wahidullah, Shahab Khattak, Younis Kiyasi were present during the function.
The participants paid tributes to the famous 'tragedy king' of Bollywood who belonged to their city. They asked the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to consider the houses of both Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor as national heritage to preserve it for future generations. Apart from being dubbed 'tragedy king', Kumar is also referred to as the 'ultimate method actor'.
He was born in Peshawar's Muhallah Khudad, near Qissa Khwani Bazaar, on December 11, 1922. He moved to Bombay, India, in late 1920s where his father Ghulam Sarwar Khan had set up a fruit business.
Kumar started his six-decade-long acting career in his debut film Jwar Bhata in 1944. Since then, he has appeared in over 60 films.
Dilip Kumar and his wife Saira Bano called in on the event and thanked Peshawarites for their love and respect.