Today, Dilip Kumar is no more with us. A well-known name in the echelons of Hindi cinema, the actor passed away at the age of 98 years due to age related complications recently. Known as the ‘Tragedy King’ for his penchant for serious roles, not many know that Dilip Kumar is actually Mohammad Yusuf Khan.
Before the three Khans made a name for themselves in recent history, there was already a ‘Khan’ in Bollywood, who was ‘ruling over the hearts of the audience’. But what was the reason due to which Yusuf Khan had to change his name to Dilip Khan? Why did the son of a fruit merchant Ghulam Sarwar Khan change his name to a Hindu one?
Dilip Kumar was born in an affluent family of fruit merchant Lala Ghulam Sarwar Khan. He was one of his 12 children. Dilip Kumar was born on 11 December 1922 in Peshawar, British India, now a part of modern Pakistan. Ghulam Sarwar had fruit farms in both Peshawar and Devalali, situated in Nashik of modern Maharashtra. This was why Yusuf’s early education happened in Barnes School of Devlali in Maharashtra.
During an interview with Mahendra Kaul, Dilip Kumar mentioned that the real reason for changing his name was because he was really scared of his father’s beatings. To quote him, “Do you really want to know the truth? It is because I was scared of my father’s beatings. He was strictly against films and show business. When I became interested in films, I decided to keep another name for myself”.
Dilip also mentioned another reason for the change in his name from Yusuf to Dilip Kumar in his autobiography ‘Dilip Kumar: The Substance and The Shadow’. To quote an excerpt, it was Devika Rani, film actress and producer, who suggested him the name.
According to the excerpt, “Devika Rani said, quite matter of factly: ‘Yousuf, I was thinking about your launch soon as an actor and I felt it would not be a bad idea if you adopted a screen name. You know, a name you would be known by and which will be very appropriate for your audience to relate to and one that will be in tune with the romantic image you are bound to acquire through your screen presence. I thought Dilip Kumar was a nice name. It just popped up in my mind when I was thinking about a suitable name for you. How does it sound to you?”
After pondering it over a while, Yusuf agreed and adopted the screen name, Dilip Kumar. However, the real reason was something else. In those days, the Indian audience wouldn’t have easily adapted to a Muslim actor that openly. There was a need for universal acceptance, and this is why Mohammad Yusuf Khan became Dilip Kumar.