Manoj Kumar death| Prem Chopra shares his friend wasn’t picking up calls in his last days

The Indian film industry woke up to the sad news of veteran actor-filmmaker Manoj Kumar passing away. As the industry mourns his loss, his friend and co-stars of many films, Prem Chopra revisits his bond with the late artiste.

Prem Chopra says, “Manoj Kumar was very close to me and I’ve lost a dear friend of mine. We have worked together from Shaheed to Kranti, and we shared all sorts of moments, be it of laughter or creativity. I used to feel very proud that I was standing next to him because he was a cinema man. He used to write his own scripts and dialogues, and sometimes even operate the camera.”

Ask him if they were in touch recently, and Prem Chopra shares, “I tried calling him in recent times, but he wasn’t picking up the calls. We didn’t mind it because we knew he wasn’t doing well. But where Manoj Kumar has created history is that every film of his had a great message for the country. He has always glorified India, even his name was Bharat. He’s done a great job and one could never forget his contribution to the cinema. I’m going to miss him forever.”

Prem and Manoj worked together in films like Kranti, Woh Kaun Thi?, Upkar, Shaheed, Purab Aur Paschim, amongst many others. “The work that he has done and the characters he has given us, I can never forget them. Also, I am here today because of the break he gave me in his films when I was ready to go back. When I came to Mumbai, I had to work to sustain, I was doing other jobs but also struggling. He was there to help me, because we had such an amazing friendship. He was also my soulmate,” Prem signs off.