Syed Kamal

This article is about the actor. For the British politician, see Syed Kamall.

Syed Kamal سیّد کمال
Born	(1937-04-27)27 April 1937 Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, British India
Died	1 October 2009(2009-10-01) (aged 72) Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Occupations	Actor Director Producer Screenwriter
Years active	1945–2002
Awards	Special Award (Lifetime Achievement Award) from Nigar Awards in 2000

Syed Kamal (Urdu: سیّد کمال; (27 April 1937 – 1 October 2009), often just known as Kamal, was a Pakistani film and TV actor, producer and director.

He had worked in 4 Bollywood films before migrating to Pakistan in 1956.

Popular in the 60s and the 70s, he worked in some 120 films.

Early life and career

Syed Kamal was born in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, British India on 27 April 1937. Syed Kamal was a popular film star in the 1960s and the 1970s. Kamal, whose film Tauba (1963) became a success at the box office, had a striking resemblance to the Indian filmstar Raj Kapoor, and he was not evasive about this issue. He once said, "People used to mistake me for Raj Kapoor while I was in Bombay and I enjoyed it". In fact, according to Pakistani script writer Ali Sufyan Afaqi, Kamal used to practice Raj Kapoor's scenes in front of a mirror. Kamal's first appearance in his Pakistani movie by producer Shabab Keranvi Thandi Sarak (1957) was meant to resemble Raj Kapoor.

He has produced and directed over a dozen of films including Insaan Aur Gadha (1973).

Achievements and awards

• Syed Kamal won a Special Nigar Award (Special Award) for film Behan Bhai (1968)
• Special Nigar Award (Lifetime Achievement Award) in 2000.

Among his other activities, he founded the Karachi Film Guild and Pakistan Film and TV Academy.

After retirement from films, he began acting in Pakistan Television dramas at a fairly advanced age. His most notable TV appearance is in hit TV drama Kashkol in which he played a wealthy businessman whose son (played by his real life son, Ghalib Kamal) becomes addicted to heroin.

Death and legacy

Syed Kamal died on 1 October 2009 at Karachi after a lingering illness at age 72. He had been a heart patient for many years and had fallen accidentally at his home about a month ago. He was bedridden since his fall. His survivors include his wife, his son Ghalib Kamal and three daughters.

Paying tributes to Syed Kamal, the president of Hum TV, Sultana Siddiqui said that Syed Kamal belonged to a respectable family and had encouraged many people to join the Pakistan film industry. Film script writer Pervaiz Kaleem, film director Aslam Dar, actress Babra Sharif and actor Ghulam Mohiuddin also paid their tributes to Syed Kamal.

Selected filmography

Year	Title	Actor	Director	Producer	Screenwriter	Language
1957	Thandi Sarak	Yes	No	No	No	Urdu
1959	Sawera	Yes	No	No	No
	Apna Paraya	Yes	No	No	No
1961	Zamana Kya Kahega	Yes	No	No	No
1962	Banjaran	Yes	No	No	No
1963	Tauba	Yes	No	No	No
1964	Ashiana	Yes	No	No	No
1965	Aisa Bhi Hota Hai	Yes	No	No	No
1968	Behan Bhai	Yes	No	No	No
	Shehnai	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
1969	Nai Laila Naya Majnu	Yes	No	No	No
1970	Road To Swat	Yes	No	No	No
	Honeymoon	Yes	Yes	Yes	No
1971	Roop Behroop	Yes	No	Yes	No
1973	Farz	Yes	No	No	No
	Insan Aur Gadha	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
1976	Jat Kuryan Tau Darda	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Punjabi
1977	Aj Diyan Kurrian	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
1978	Kal De Munday	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
1984	Jat Kamala Gaya Dubai	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
1986	Siyasat	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Urdu

See also

• List of Lollywood actors

External links

• Syed Kamal at IMDb