New Delhi, April 7: Former cricket and hockey players from Pakistan have paid rich tributes to legendary Bollywood actor and director Manoj Kumar, remembering him as someone “very hospitable and intellectual” during their interaction with him on tours to India in the past.
Manoj Kumar died in Mumbai on April 4 after protracted illness and his death was mourned across the border. Kumar was born in the hilly town of Abbottabad in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province before the 1947 partition and migrated to India where he made a name for himself in Bollywood. Former Pakistan pacer Sikander Bakht said he could not meet Kumar but will always remember his act of generosity and kindness.
“When I took eight wickets in the Delhi Test of 1979 Manoj Kumar Saheb sent a cake to congratulate me for my feat. It was an act of kindness which I will always remember despite not meeting him on that tour,” Bakht told Telecom Asia Sport (www.telecomasia.net).
Another former Pakistan player Iqbal Qasim said Manoj Kumar was very generous. “Kumar Saheb invited the team for a dinner on the 1987 tour and his generosity and kindness is always remembered by the players,” Qasim said.
“He (Kumar) knew a lot about cricket and about some Pakistan players, so we were impressed with his knowledge and love of the game.” Kumar had happy memories of his childhood home in Abbottabad. He visited his hometown in 1979 during which he took the famous pastries of the city for his mother and the water from the city for his father.
Kumar also signed famous Pakistan hero Mohammad Ali to work in his Bollywood flick “Clerk” in 1989 in a star-studded cast including Rekha, Anita Raj, Shashi Kapoor, Rajendra Kumar, Ashok Kumar, Prem Chopra and Sonu Walia. The people in his hometown Abbottabad also sent condolence messages for his family through Telecom Asia Sport.
“We are very sad over the news of his death and console his family,” said Moeen-uddin Qureshi. “He came to his hometown some 40 years ago and it was celebrated across the city. He was like a family member.” Former hockey captains Islahuddin and Sami Ullah also remembered Kumar’s hospitality on Pakistan hockey team’s tour in 1978.
“Kumar Saheb and Duleep Kumar Saheb invited us to studios where we watched shooting and were served with delicious food,” Islahuddin told www.telecomasia.net. Sami Ullah, famous as a flying horse for his speedy dashes, said Kumar Saheb was a legend.
“We had watched his films like Daag, Clerk etc so we were awestruck when we met him but he was simple and intellectual because he knew a lot about field hockey and some of our players,” recalled Sami. “We watched the shooting of “Burning Train” and discussed a lot about his hometown Abbottabad, field hockey, cricket and Bollywood. He was an amazing person.”
IANS