Guru Dutt

Considered to be a man ahead of his time, Guru Dutt was one of the greatest icons of commercial Indian cinema. Although he made less than ten films, they are believed to be the best to come from Bollywood's Golden Age, known both for their ability to reach out to the common man and for their artistic and lyrical content, and they went on to become trend-setters that have influenced Bollywood ever since. But for all his genius, there was a Shroud of tragedy that overshadowed his career and life. Dutt was born in Mysore on July ninth, 1925, the eldest son of a headmaster and a housewife who was a part-time writer. As a child, he had to deal with a strained relationship between his parents, hostility from his mother's family, and the death of a close relative.

He received his early education in Calcutta, and in 1941, he joined the Uday Shankar India Culture Center, where he received basic training in the performing arts under dance maestro Uday Shankar.

Afterward, in 1944, he had a short stint as a telephone operator.

Dutt entered the Indian film industry in 1944, working as a choreographer in Prabhat Studios.

There, he became friends with Dev Anand (whom he met when they worked on the film Hum Ek Hain (1946)) and Rehman. These early friendships helped ease his way into Bollywood.

After Prabhat went under in 1947, Dutt moved to Mumbai, where he worked with the leading directors of the time: Amiya Chakrabarty in Girls' School (1949) and Gyan Mukherjee in Sangram (1946). He got his big break when Dev Anand invited him to direct a film in his newly formed company Navketan Films.

Dutt made his directorial debut with Baazi (1951), which starred Dev Anand. The film was an urban crime thriller that paid homage to classic film noir. However, it also carried its own elements that ensured it was not a remake of a Hollywood film: notably, songs were used to further the story's narrative, and close-up shots were used frequently. The film was a success and became a trend-setter for future crime films.

On the personal front, Dutt met his wife, playback singer Geeta Dutt (née Roy), during the song-recording sessions of Baazi (1951), and they married May twenty-sixth, 1953.

Dutt's next releases were Jaal (1952) and Baaz (1953). Dutt made his acting debut in the latter film, which he also directed.

But while they were average successes, he finally tasted success with Aar Paar (1954), another crime thriller, but with a far more polished story and look. Then came Mr. & Mrs.

55 (1955), a frothy romantic comedy focusing on women's' rights; and C. I. D.

(1956), yet another crime thriller in which Waheeda Rehman made her debut.

His next films, Pyaasa (1957) and Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959), are regarded as his best work.

Pyaasa (1957) was his masterpiece, about a poet trying to achieve success in a hypocritical, uncaring world. It was a box-office hit and is ranked as his greatest film ever.

In contrast, Kaagaz Ke Phool (1959) was a miserable flop at the box office: the semi-autobiographical story of a tragic love affair set against the backdrop of the film industry was deemed too morbid for the audience to swallow and went right over audience's heads. Although in later years the film received critical acclaim for its cinematography and has gained a cult following, Dutt, who had put his soul into the film, was devastated over its failure and never directed another film.

Although he had sworn off directing, Dutt continued to produce and act in films, notably the period dramas Chaudhvin Ka Chand (1960) and Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (1962). The latter film, interestingly, is controversial because it is debated whether Dutt had ghost-directed the film. Dutt's personal life had become complicated: he had gotten romantically involved with his protégé Waheeda Rehman and his wife Geeta Dutt had separated from him as a result. Rehman too had distanced herself from him. Also, Dutt, an ambitious person, felt he had achieved too much too soon professionally - there was nothing better to be achieved, and this caused a vacuum in his life. Unable to cope with all the trauma and emptiness, he took to heavy drinking.

On October tenth, 1964, Dutt was found dead in his bed. The cause of death was deemed a combination of alcohol and sleeping pills, although a debate still lingers over whether his death was by accident or a successful suicide attempt.

He had two younger brothers, Atmaram and Devidas. Devidas is more popularly known as producer, director Devi Dutt and is married to producer Chanda Dutt. Their son Sanjay Dutt worked as a production assistant in the film Bhavna (1984). Guru Dutt has a younger sister, Lalitha Lajmi (whose daughter is the Indian film director, Kalpana Lajmi). He had a younger brother, Shashidhar, who died at the age of seven months old.

Director Atma Ram is his younger brother. Atma Ram's daughter Anjali married Leena Chandavarkar's brother Anil. They had a daughter named Akshata Chandavarkar. Anil passed away in 1985 when he committed suicide.

Guru Dutt's daughter Nina Memon is a pop singer. She debuted her album titled "Pal" in 2006. Nina sung cover versions of her mother Geeta Dutt's songs "Babu ji Dheere Chalna" and "Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu". Guru Dutt's granddaughter Nafeesa Memon starred in the video "Mera Naam Chin Chin Chu".

Anurag Kashyap was planning a film on Guru Dutt in 2009. He spoke to Aamir Khan who agreed to the film. The project was shelved.