Although their affair ended on a sour note, there never was a love story like that of Madhubala and Dilip Kumar. A few days ago, her sister, Madhur Bhushan (who was 16 years younger), talked about how the late actor, Dilip Kumar, had visited her in the hospital before her death. He had even gone for her funeral, but the burial was over by then.
Madhubala and Dilip Kumar were in love for nine years.
She ultimately married singer Kishore Kumar. However, she was diagnosed with a ventricular septal defect (hole in the heart) and died at the young age of 36.
The ethereal beauty was an enigma and stories about her life continue to emerge to this day.
What Lata Mangeshkar said about Madhubala.
The late veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar once said that Madhubala didn’t really care for her looks. “She was always warm and friendly. Though everyone stressed on her breath-taking beauty, she never took her looks seriously,” recalled Lata Mangeshkar while speaking to Deccan Chronicle.
“She stipulated in her contracts that she wanted only me to do her playback singing. This was after the success of Aayega Aanewala in Mahal (1949). During those days, we’d meet socially quite often. That kind of camaraderie no longer exists… Madhubala mujhe bahut pyar se milti thi (She would meet me with a lot of affection),” Mangeshkar once noted.
Why Shammi Kapoor couldn’t take his eyes off her
He said Madhubala’s charm and persona drew people in –‘like a thunderbolt.’ Shammi Kapoor had once elaborated to Rediff that when he met on the set for Rail Ka Dibba, ‘he could not take his eyes off her’. Her beauty was so captivating, that he could not remember his lines and was exceedingly nervous. “And she was fully aware of the effect she had been having on me and was relishing it thoroughly,” he said.
Someone liked her even before Dilip Kumar
She had a childhood friend Latif, who was reportedly broken-hearted when she moved to Mumbai to pursue acting. According to some, he still visits Madhubala’s grave, every year to place a rose (a parting gift that she had given him) on February 23, the day she died.
Then there was Prem Nath
Madhur Bhushan once revealed. “Apa first fell in love with Prem Nath. The relationship lasted six months. It broke on grounds of religion. He asked her to convert and she refused.”
Later, Prem Nath’s wife, actor Bina Rai, recalled that the couple had even gone to Haji Malang together. However, Madhubala was severely distraught when they got married, and that was when her health started deteriorating. She told Cineplot, “Yes they were in love. My husband was very upset about her condition. He couldn’t accept the fact that she was seriously ill. They must have shared something beautiful but things don’t always work out. Love stories don’t always have happy endings… I’m told Madhubala was very disturbed on the day we got married.”
