There have been very few Bollywood superstars who were outspoken, particularly against the establishment. Fewer still opt to take the legal recourse when pressured by the Prime Minister no less. But one did, some five decades ago.
And to the surprise of one and all, emerged victorious too. This is the story of the Bollywood star who took on the government and won. Manoj Kumar’s battle with Indira Gandhi government In the 1970s, Manoj Kumar was considered the biggest star around when it came to patriotic films.
He had proven his mettle with hits like Shaheed, Purab Aur Pashchim, and Upkar. In 1972, after a disagreement with the Indira Gandhi government, the actor saw a ban on his film Shor. Kumar took the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting – led by PM Gandhi herself – to court and ended up victorious.
Shor released later that year and was a moderate success. Things came to a head again in 1975 when Manoj Kumar opposed the Emergency. This led to the I&B Ministry banning another of his films Dus Numbri.
The film eventually did release in 1976 and was a superhit. Manoj Kumar’s film career Born Harikrishn Goswami in a Punjabi Hindu family in Abbottabad, Kumar and his family had to migrate to India in 1947 during the Partition, when he was just 10 years old. The young Harikrishn stayed in refugee camps in Delhi for some time before his family was able to get back on its feet.
His first jobs in cinema included daily wage work lifting lighting equipment on sets as a tee.