Nasir Khan (actor)

Nasir Khan (actor) Biography

Nasir Khan was a Bollywood actor, better known as the younger brother of the legendary Bollywood actor Dileep Kumar. He was married to actress Begum Para, glamour queen of 1950s & his son is actor Ayub Khan, who has appeared in a few Bollywood films and television serials. Nasir was earlier married to the daughter of famous filmmaker Nazir Ahmed Khan. Nasir has made brief appearances in Bollywood movies and died at a comparatively young age of 49 in 1974. This actor is always remembered as the leading man of Pakistan’s maiden production Teri Yaad (1948).

Nasir was born in 1924 into a Hindko-speaking Awan family of 12 children in Peshawar, now a part of Pakistan. His father, Lala Ghulam Sarwar, was a landlord and fruit merchant. He owned orchards in Peshawar and Deolali in Maharashtra. Nasir Khan started his career in 1945 with Filmistan’s Mazdoor (1945). His second film was Shehnai (1947) opposite Rehana which was a box office hit. The popular songs especially Mar katari mar jana and Aana meri jaan meri jaan Sunday kai Sunday were pictured on this actor. It was during the time when his elder brother Dileep also started earning fame as a popular actor.

Soon after partition, he shifted to Lahore where he continued with movies. He appeared in two Pakistani films i.e. Teri Yaad (1948) and Shahida (1949). He was the hero of first Pakistani film - Teri Yaad. But the movie was a box office failure due to lack of production quality and Jinnah’s death. His second Pakistani release - Shahida (1949) too became a failure which made him disheartened. He was supported by Dileep Kumar, the then rising star of Bollywood in the late 1940s. Nasir returned to India in 1951 and continued to act in Bollywood movies, mostly supporting roles. Khazana, Nagina, Nakhare, Nazneen Phoolon Ke Haar and Saudagar are his noted movies.

He played lead role opposite Nutan in Nagina (1951), a mystery-thriller, the movie that was given an Adult-only certificate. Khan appeared with many top heroines including Suraiya (Lal Kunwar), Nargis (Angarey) and Meena Kumari (Daera). He delivered three hits pairing with Nutan - Nagina, Aagosh and Shisham, though he was not able to reach the stardom his brother earned. He played the role of Gunga, Dilip Kumar’s screen brother in the 1961 blockbuster ‘Ganga Jamuna’, which told the story of hatred of two brothers. But after that he took a break from the industry. His Bollywood films - Yaadon Ki Baraat (1973) and Dilip Kumar starrer Bairaag (1976) were released posthumously.

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Updated: December 26, 2015