Pran and Ashok Kumar: one of the most enduring friendships in Bollywood 


By Rajesh Ahuja 


They were two legendary actors of Hindi cinema who started out their careers being on opposite sides of the fence - Ashok Kumar was the lovable hero while Pran was the detestable villain of the piece . 


Their on screen rivalry notwithstanding, Ashok Kumar and Pran shared an enduring friendship in Bollywood. 


Infact, Ashok Kumar and Pran's  is considered to be among the most enduring friendships in Bollywood. 


Ashok Kumar and Pran had the most enduring  friendships in Bollywood 




So close were Pran and Ashok Kumar that the legendary Bollywood  villain,  referring in his biography to his bond with Dadamoni,  as Ashok Kumar was  lovingly  referred to in the film industry, recalled Dadamoni saying that if he (Ashok Kumar) was in the bathroom and Pran's movie was being  shown  on  TV,  he would  Immediately  recognize the voice  and  say 'that's Pran speaking,  isn't it? 


Pran had met Ashok Kumar for the first time in Bombay  Talkies, where he had been signed  up  for  a  role in Ziddi. 


Once struck,  this friendship lasted through the decades. 


One quality of Ashok Kumar that endeared him to Pran was that he never spoke against anyone in the film industry. 


'If, however,  somebody  happened to get on his nerves and annoy him to the point where he could not bear it anymore and if he really wanted to say something bad about the person,  then all he would say was that 'Pran,  just be careful of this man here. Keep your distance. ' In Ashok Kumar's language,  it was as if he had cursed him to the limit, 'Pran  said in his  biography. 


Among the various memorable films featuring Ashok Kumar and Pran were 'Afsana' (where Ashok Kumar featured in a double role and Pran as the villain), Shakti Samanta's 'Inspector', 'Mr X', H S Rawail's ' Mere Mehboob ', AVM's 'Pooja Ke Phool', Anoop Kumar Productions' 'Ansoo Ban Gaye Phool, A Bhim Singh's 'Bhai Bahen' apart from 'Poorab Aur Paschim', 'Adhikar' , 'Sazaa ' and Brij Sadanah's 'Victoria No 203'.


Also Read 


When Pran charged just one rupee from Raj Kapoor for Bobby 



Pran and Dev Anand: a lucky combination in Bollywood 






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