Hrishikesh Mukherjee birth anniversary: All you need to know about this prolific filmmaker

Hrishikesh Mukherjee was a film director, editor and writer whose work has been highly celebrated. Today, fans have taken to social media to celebrate his birth anniversary and are remembering all of his famous movies and other notable works. Some of his best movies were Anuradha (1960), Chhaya (1961), Anand(1971), and Namak Haraam (1973). He also worked with many great actors and artists in his career and was known to be a pioneer who tried embracing realism in his films. Take a closer look at Hrishikesh Mukherjee's life and his memorable career in the article below. 

Also Read | KBC Written Update: Amitabh Bachchan credits doctors for COVID recovery

Hrishikesh Mukherjee's childhood

Hrishikesh Mukherjee was born on September 30, 1922, in then Calcutta, to a Bengali family. He studied science in high school and graduated in chemistry from the University of Calcutta.

Also Read | Amitabh Bachchan announces he is 'a pledged organ donor'; says 'bearing the giving'

Hrishikesh Mukherjee's career 

Hrishikesh Mukherjee kick-started his career with B. N. Sircar's New Theatres in Calcutta in the late 1940s. He used to work there as a cameraman and gained a lot of knowledge from his master. After a while, he shifted to Bombay where he began working with Bimal Roy as a film editor and assistant director in 1951. After working with Bimal Roy for a while, he decided to start making his own movies. 

Also Read | Virender Sehwag comically mimics Amitabh Bachchan's dialogue for Rohit Sharma; watch video

His first movie was Musafir in 1957. The film was written by Ritwik Ghatak and told the story of three families and how their lives were intertwined with each other as they lived in the same house. The film featured stars like Dilip Kumar, Kishore Kumar, Keshto Mukherjee, Suchitra Sen and Nirupa Roy in main roles. However, the film failed to make an impact.

His second movie was Anari in 1959 and featured stars like Raj Kapoor, Nutan, Motilal and Lalita Pawar in the lead. The film was very successful and Hrishikesh Mukherjee was started getting noticed. The film and its actors won six awards -President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Hindi and  Filmfare Best Actor Award for Raj Kapoor for Anari. 

After his second, he made many movies like - Anuradha (1960), Chhaya (1961), Asli-Naqli (1962),  Anupama (1966),  Aashirwad (1968), Satyakam (1969), Guddi (1971), Anand (1971), Bawarchi (1972), Abhimaan (1973), Namak Haraam (1973), Mili (1975), Chupke Chupke (1975), Alaap (1977) and Gol Maal (1979). His last film was Achha Bura in 1983. The film starred Raj Babbar as Ravi Lala, Anita Raj as Rita Roy and Amjad Khan as Mohammad Sher Khan. The film was very successful. 

Hrishikesh Mukherjee's Awards 

Hrishikesh Mukherjee was a celebrated artist. His work was known to be simple yet showcased many complex emotions in them. Here are a few of the awards he won: 

• 2001: Padma Vibhushan by the Government of India

• 1956: Filmfare Best Editing Award: Naukari

• 1994: Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award – South

• 1957: Certificate of Merit for Third Best Feature Film in Hindi – Musafir

• 1968: President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Hindi – Aashirwad

• 1969: President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Hindi – Satyakam

• 1970: President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Hindi – Anand

• 1999: Dada Saheb Phalke Award

Hrishikesh Mukherjee's family and death 

Hrishikesh Mukherjee had a wife who died 30 years before him. He had 5 kids, 3 daughters and two sons. BBC reported that Hrishikesh Mukherjee was an animal lover and had many dogs at his Mumbai house. For a very long time, he lived alone. Hrishikesh Mukherjee died on August 27, 2006, after he was admitted to Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai for not feeling well. He used to suffer from chronic kidney failure regularly. 

Also Read | KBC Written Update: Amitabh Bachchan's grand return to Season 12

Promo Pic Credit: Ethenic Channel's Youtube