Dara Singh Birth Anniversary: 6 Interesting Facts of This Wrestler-Turned-Actor That Will Amaze You
Dara Singh was born in a Jat family on November 19, 1928. He was a wrestler turned actor. He was known for his well-built physique, voice and of course his sweet smile.
Deedar Singh Randhawa, widely known as Dara Singh, was a wrestler turned actor. He was known for his well-built physique, voice and of course his sweet smile. Dara Singh was born in a Jat family on November 19, 1928 to Balwant Kaur and Surat Singh. Today it is his 91st birth anniversary. From winning championships in wrestling to winning hearts of movie buffs, there few facts about this wrestler-turned-actor that will leave you amazed. Dara Singh Inducted Into WWE 2018 Hall of Fame (Watch Video).
Wrestler – As a child, Dara Singh had a huge physique and hence he was encouraged to learn the Indian style of wrestling, pehlwani. He began his wrestling training under Harnam Singh in the Great World Stadium in Singapore. He has competed against some of the biggest names in the wrestling world such as Bill Verna, John Da Silva, Rikidōzan and many others.
Acting – Dara Singh started to work in the film industry as an actor since 1952. He made his acting debut with the film titled Sangdil. For many years he worked as a stunt film actor. But Dara Singh shot to fame for essaying the role of Hanuman in the adaptation of the Hindu epic Ramayan.
Hindi Dialect – Dara Singh was born and brought up in the village of Dharmuchak in Majha, Punjab. Although people who came from cities in Punjab had no difficulty in speaking Hindi, Dara Singh did face few issues. In an interview the actor had admitted that his pronunciation in Hindi was weak. It was after entering the film industry he learned to speak Hindi and Urdu.
Mollywood – Do you know Dara Singh has also worked in a Malayalam film? Yes, he had made a special appearance in the film Mutharamkunnu P.O. (1985) and the movie had come in limelight mainly because of his appearance as a wrestler.
Politics – Dara Singh joined BJP in January 1998 and was also the first sportsperson to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha. He served as the member of the parliament between 2003-2009.
Last Feature Film – Dara Singh was last seen in the film Jab We Met that starred Shahid Kapoor (Aditya) and Kareena Kapoor Khan (Geet) in the lead. He played the character of Geet’s grandfather in this movie.
Dara Singh has contributed for the film industry for almost five decades. From playing a wrestler to be known as the hero of B category action films, Dara Singh has experimented every role. He has won Professional Indian Wrestling Championship in 1953, the Commonwealth Wrestling Championship trophy in 1959 and many other accolades in the world of wrestling. Dara Singh will always be remembered for his undefeated worldwide streak in wrestling and as also a successful movie star.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 19, 2019 09:15 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).