Vinod Mehra (Hindi: विनोद मेहरा) (13 February 1945 – 30 October 1990) was an Indian actor in Bollywood films. He started out as a child actor in a few films in the late 1950s and early 1960s before starting his adult film career in 1971 acting in over 100 films throughout the 1970s through to the 1990s. He was also the producer and director of the film Gurudev which was released after his death at the age of 45 in 1990.

Career[link]

Mehra made his debut in the 1958 film Raagni as a child artist playing the younger version of the character played by Kishore Kumar. After playing a few more minor roles as a child, he started his film career as an adult in 1971 with Ek Thi Rita, a smash hit based on the English play, 'A Girl Called Rita', along with Tanuja.^[1][2]

This was followed by the film "Parday Ke Peechhay" opposite debutant Yogeeta Bali followed by Elaan (with Rekha), Amar Prem (1972) and Lal Patthar, though it was only Shakti Samanta's Anuraag (1972) with Maushmi Chatterjee, which established him as an actor. He went on to appear in over 100 films in his career spanning over two decades. He played the lead role in some of his earlier films but often acted in many multi-starrers as the secondary lead or played supporting roles such as a brother, friend, uncle, father and police officer. He worked with many actors like Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjeev Kumar, Rajesh Khanna and Dharmendra. His frequent female co-stars included Rekha, Maushmi Chatterjee, Yogeeta Bali, Shabana Azmi and Bindiya Goswami.

Some of his prominent films were Nagin, Jaani Dushman and Khud-Daar. He received Filmfare Nominations as Best Supporting Actor for Anurodh (1977), Amardeep (1979), and Bemisal (1982).^[3]

He turned producer and director with the film Gurudev in the late 1980s, with Sridevi, Rishi Kapoor and Anil Kapoor in the lead. He died of a heart attack before completion of the film at the age of 45 in October 1990. The film was released in 1993 after director Raj Sippy completed the film.

Many of his delayed films were released after his death and dedicated to his memory. Some films, such as Insaniyat (1994) and Aurat Aurat Aurat (1996), were delayed and re-written so as not to involve his character.

Personal life and family[link]

Vinod Mehra was born in Amritsar, India in 1945. He was married three times. His first marriage to Meena Broca was arranged by his mother. The marriage was reportedly not consummated as Vinod had a heart attack shortly after the marriage. Once he recovered, he married his frequent leading lady Bindiya Goswami while still married to Meena. Meena left him and returned to her parents' house. His marriage to Bindiya also quickly dissolved, and she soon married director J. P. Dutta.^[4]

He was said to be married to superstar Rekha, although in a 2004 television interview with Simi Garewal, she denied being married to him, referring to him as a "well-wisher."^[5] His last marriage, to Kiran, lasted until his death. The couple had two children: Soniya (born in 1988) and Rohan. After their father's death, Soniya and Rohan were brought up in Kenya. Soniya went to London for further education. She made her film debut in Victoria No. 203 which is a remake of the 1972 classic of the same name.

Selected filmography[link]

Actor[link]

• Raagni (1958) .... Young Rajan
• Bewaqoof (1960) ... Young Kishore Kumar
• Angulimala (1960) .... Young Ahinshak
• Ek Thi Rita (1971)
• Lal Patthar (1971) .... Shekhar
• Amar Prem (1972) .... Nandu
• Raftaar.. (1972)
• Anuraag (1972) .... Rajesh
• Hawas (1974) .... Dr Bali
• Kunwara Baap (1974) .... Special appearance
• Vardaan (1975)
• Zindagi (1976) -- Ajay, Seema's friend
• Arjun Pandit (1976)
• Ginny Aur Johnny (1976)
• Nagin (1976) .... Rajesh
• Sabse Bada Rupaiya (1976) .... Amit Rai
• Anurodh (1977) .... Shrikanth
• Ghar (1978) .... Vikas Chandra
• Swarg Narak (1978) .... Vinod
• Saajan Bina Suhagan (1978)
• Aakhri Kasam (1979) .... Inspector Ram
• Dada (1979)....Moti / Jeetu Dharamdas
• Amar Deep (1979) - Kishan
• Jaani Dushman (1979) .... Madman
• Jurmana (1979) - Prem Prakash
• Kartavya (1979) .... Dushyant
• Pyaara Dushman (1980)
• The Burning Train (1980) .... Rakesh
• Pyaasa Sawan (1981) .... Monorama's father
• Sannata (1981) .... CBI officer (special appearance)
• Khud-Daar (1982) .... Raja
• Bemisal (1982) .... Dr. Prashant Chautervedi
• Naukar Biwi Ka (1983) ..... Inspector Amar Nath
• Sweekar Kiya Maine(1983)....Kailash Shukla
• Bindiya Chamkegi (1984) .... Shyam
• Aap Ke Saath (1986) .... Ashok
• Pyar Ki Jeet (1987) .... Anand
• Aag Hi Aag (1987) .... Raghuveer Singh
• Patthar Ke Phool (1991) .... Inspector Vijay Verma
• Insaniyat (1994) .... Nandu
• Aurat Aurat Aurat (1996) .... Vijay
• Saajan kee saheli (with rajendra kumar, Rekha & Nutan.)

)

Producer & Director[link]

• Gurudev (1993)

References[link]

1. ^ A serious satirist Subhash Chedda, Indian Express, 25 July 1997 .
2. ^ Biography Yahoo! Movies.
3. ^ "Filmfare Nominess and Winner - 1953-2005" (PDF). 2006-02-26. http://deep750.googlepages.com/FilmfareAwards.pdf. Retrieved 2008-11-23. 
4. ^ Salaam Bollywood. http://www.screenindia.com/20010921/fsalaam.html. Retrieved 2008-11-23. 
5. ^ Mehta, Ruchika (3 June 2004). "India's Greta Garbo breaks silence". The Times of India. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-717832,prtpage-1.cms. Retrieved 2008-11-23. 

External links[link]

• Vinod Mehra at the Internet Movie Database

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