Kumar Gaurav (born 11 July 1960) is an Indian film actor and son of late actor Rajendra Kumar. He has acted in several hit films such as Love Story, Teri Kasam, Naam and Kaante.
Career
He made his film debut opposite fellow debutante actress Vijayta Pandit with Love Story (1981) which was produced by his father who also starred alongside him in the film. This film played at the box office for a long period of time; not only for its innovative story, but also its memorable music by Rahul Dev Burman and the fresh leading debutants. Many youngsters began to emulate his character in the film, produced by his father and directed by Rahul Rawail which was a blockbuster. His next film, the 1982 release Teri Kasam with actress Poonam Dhillon, another heart-throb of the generation, was a moderate success. That same year he starred in the musical Star which failed at the box office but its music was popular.
He then worked in Mahesh Bhatt's television film Janam in (1985). His understated performance in this film is still considered his career's best. In the following year he had his second box office hit with Naam (1986), again a Mahesh Bhatt film which was produced by his father and also starred his brother-in-law Sanjay Dutt in the lead role. Despite the success of Naam, Manoj's career declined as all of his subsequent films failed to do well at the box office.
He was frequently paired with almost all the young actresses of the 1980s and '90s—Poonam Dhillon, Rati Agnihotri, Neelam and Padmini Kolhapure. Yet his pairing with Vijayta Pandit in their debut movie is still remembered most.
Having produced his earlier films Janam and Naam, his father tried to revive his career with the 1993 film Phool which had him paired with the top actress of the time Madhuri Dixit. The film also had his father and father-in-law Sunil Dutt in supporting roles. However, it didn't bring him any luck either, though its melodious songs were noticed. He then took a long break from acting and only had two delayed and completed films releasing in 1996. In 1999, he made appearances in a few television series.
In 2000, he was seen again on the big screen in the delayed release Gang which had been in production for nearly a decade due to director Mazhar Khan's ill health. In 2002, he played one of the six protagonists in the crime thriller Kaante, directed by Sanjay Gupta and a remake of the American cult hit Reservoir Dogs (1992). Kaante was a huge success at the box office and the third-highest-grossing film of 2002. Kaante remains his last Bollywood film to date.
In 2004, he appeared in his first American film, Guiana 1838. This award-winning film by Rohit Jagessar grossed the highest screen average at the North American box office on opening weekend and is among the Top 25 all-time-highest screen average charts. Guiana 1838 tells the story of Indians arriving in the British colony of British Guiana, now Guyana, as indentured servants amidst the abolition of slavery during the nineteenth century.
In 2006, he starred in the silent film My Daddy Strongest. He has not been active in the industry since then.
Awards
1986: Nominated: Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Janam
Filmography
Year Film Role Female Lead
1981 Love Story Bunty Vijayta Pandit
1982 Teri Kasam Tony/Deepak Poonam Dhillon
Star Dev Kumar Rati Agnihotri/Padmini Kolhapure
1983 Lovers Viju Padmini Kolhapure
Romance Amar Poonam Dhillon
1984 Hum Hain Lajawab Pawan Kumar Singh Padmini Kolhapure
All Rounder Ajay Rati Agnihotri
Divorce Jasmin
1985 Ek Se Bhale Do Bunty D'Mello Rati Agnihotri
Janam Rahul Shernaz Patel
1986 Begaana Anand Mathur / Kailashnath Rana Rati Agnihotri
Naam Ravi Kapoor Poonam Dhillon
1987 Dil Tujhko Diya Vijay 'Chhotu' 'Munna' Sahni Rati Agnihotri
Albela Rati Agnihotri
Aaj Akshay Anamika Paul
1989 Goonj Sanjeev Kamat Juhi Chawla
Jurrat Inspector Avinash Amala Akkineni
1991 Hai Meri Jaan Bunty Ayesha Jhulka
Pratigyabadh Shakti Yadav Neelam Kothari
Indrajeet Vijay Neelam Kothari
1992 Siyasat Kimi Katkar
1993 Phool Karamraj 'Raju' / Gopal Madhuri Dixit
1996 Muthi Bhar Zameen Karan Poonam Dhillon
Sautela Bhai Shankar Neelam Kothari
2000 Gang Nihal Singh
2002 Kaante Anand 'Andy' Mathur
2004 Guiana 1838 Laxman
2009 My Daddy Strongest
Bihaad
Television
Sikandar (1999)
Chocolate (1999)
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