Vinod Khanna, an actor with a class of his own, finally departs after a long and painful battle from cancer. This is how my father describes his career:
“Vinod Khanna was introduced by Sunil Dutt in Man ka Meet where he played the villain. As a villain he later excelled in Elaan, Mera Gaon Mera Desh and Aan Milo Sajaana. Later successfully graduated to lead roles where in Achanak, Imtihan, Mere Apne he made his presence felt.
Haath ki Saafai gave him a role of a lifetime wherein his performance as a parallel stood out. Starred with AB in several films and as such comparisons were obvious.
Endowed with a strong screen presence in the mould of his mentor Sunil Dutt one can view Qurbani n number of times.
Later joined Osho and as critics insist left the field vacant for AB. A grateful protege he worked for free for Dutt Saab’s Reshma aur Shera. Sachcha Jhoota is another film he is best remembered for.”
Even though I didn’t belong to the era, his films were introduced to me by my father, who is an ardent fan. Imtihan and Haath ki Safai are two of his films which i saw on his recommendation.
Today, after losing one of his most favourite icons, Papa wrote me this message :
“When childhood icons depart the world seems desolate.Sleep my hero sleep!!! “
Here is a copy of a piece of paper (a letter sent by him to my dad as a reply to fan mail) so precious that it has been safely kept for almost 40 years now and fondly passed over to me as a legacy.
From Mrs. Sanjivini S. Bhalla, and her father, Mr. Sandeep Sharma.
