In the fifth part of this nine-part series, we highlight some more lesser-know facts about Dev Anand. Read on.
Catch the first, second, third and fourth parts here.
1. Shared a chawl room with three people
When Dev Anand arrived in Mumbai, he did not have enough money to even eat.
He lived in a chawl and had to share a room with three people and a bathroom with 20 people, who lived on the same floor as him.
2. Worked in the armed forces postal department
He worked in the postal department of armed forces for a while.
The actor was paid Rs 165 a month. His work was to read the letters that came for soldiers and censor any unwarranted information.
3. Bought a house with his salary from Hum Ek Hain
Everyone knows Prabhat Film Studios film Hum Ek Hain (1946) was Dev Anand's first film but few know that Dev Anand was paid a handsome monthly salary of Rs 400 for the film.
He bought a house with that money.
4. Gave work to then jobless Balraj Sahni
When a jobless Balraj Sahni approached Dev Anand, the actor/director took him onboard to write the dialogues and screenplay for Baazi as Sahni's grasp on Hindi was really good.
5. His pact with Guru Dutt
The Guru Dutt-Dev Anand friendship was known to all.
They made a pact that all of Guru Dutt's films will have Dev Anand as the lead and all of Dev Anand's films will be directed by Guru Dutt.
They kept their promise. Dev Anand gave Guru Dutt a break with Baazi in 1951. They went on to do two more films, CID and Jaal.
6. Guru Dutt's death
When Guru Dutt died in 1964, Dev Anand was shooting for Teen Deviyaan.
He got the news while on the sets of the film. He immediately packed up and went to his late friend's house.
7. Never went to funerals
Dev Anand never went on funerals and never mourned anyone's death.
The only times he wept a lot was when his mother died and then later, when his brother Vijay Anand passed away.
8. Hare Ram Hare Krishna's little Jasbir was fashioned after his daughter
The character Jasbir aka Janice in the film Hare Rama Hare Krishna sucks her thumb like Dev Anand's daughter Devina did, when she was a child.
9. His relationship with Sunil Dutt
It was Dev Anand who asked Sunil Dutt to try his luck in films.
Sunil Dutt and Dev Anand both hailed from Lahore, and so they called each other Graen (one belonging to the same).
Dev Anand was the first person to whom Sunil Dutt broke the news of his wedding with Nargis.
10. His directorial debut was Prem Pujari
Prem Pujari was Dev Anand's first film as director.
The film flopped at the box office.
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