This actor worked in 200 films, delivering 56 hits, more than superstars like Shah Rukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, and Dilip Kumar.
The term superstar has been used for very few actors in the Hindi film industry. Ever since it was used for Dilip Kumar over seven decades ago, maybe half a dozen actors have justified being called that. Many stars have delivered hit after hit and yet never been labelled a ‘superstar’. One such person was this bankable star from the70s and 80s, who started as an extra and made his way to the top. Oh, and on his way, he broke the box office records set by the likes of Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan.
The hero who was a heroine’s body double
In the late-1950s, a young man by the name of Ravi Kapoor began working in his father’s jewellery shop in Mumbai. Part of his job was to supply imitation jewellery to film productions. In 1959, the 17-year-old was on the sets of V Shantaram’s Navrang when he was spotted by the director, who gave him a break. However, Ravi was not to act but merely pose as the film’s heroine Sandhya’s body double in certain scenes and dance sequences. It wasn’t until five years later that Ravi made his acting debut. V Shantaram gave him a break in Geet Gaya Patharon Ne under his stage name – Jeetendra.
Jeetendra’s stellar box office record
Through the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, Jeetendra acted in almost 200 films, many of which were successes. In all, in his career so far, the actor has worked in 209 films of which 56 have been hits and 13 more have been successful (semi hits or average grossers). This number is higher than the hit count of several men who have been labelled superstars. For instance, Amitabh Bachchan has 55 hits, Rajesh Khanna 42, Salman Khan 37, Shah Rukh Khan 33, and Dilip Kumar 31. Yet, Jeetendra was never labelled a superstar because none of his hits were industry toppers. On top of that, the actor worked in many unsuccessful films too, giving over 106 flops, more than any other Bollywood star except Mithun Chakraborty.
