Dara Singh's birth anniversary: Read all about the life of the 'Ramayan' actor

Fans are celebrating Dara Singh's birth anniversary today. He was a famous professional wrestler, actor and politician. His role of Hanuman in film Bajrangbali (1976) made his legacy evergreen and fans still remember the actor for playing this iconic role. Apart from acting, Dara Singh was also the first sportsman to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha. On the occasion of his birth anniversary, read all about the life of the legendary actor:

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Dara Singh's early life and childhood

Deedar Singh Randhawa was born on November 19, 1928, in the village of Dharmuchak, Punjab. His family was a Jat Sikh and India was still under British rule. Not a lot has been documented on Dara Singh's childhood. 

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Dara Singh's wrestling career

Dara Singh's wrestling career kickstarted in 1947 when he travelled to Singapore. He worked there in a drum-manufacturing mill and underwent his wrestling training under Harnam Singh at the Great World Stadium. The training made him quite strong and he was considered as one of the best wrestlers. He fought against Bill Verna, Firpo Zbyszko, John Da Silva, Rikidōzan, Danny Lynch and Ski Hi Lee. 

In 1954 Dara competed in the Rustam-e-Hind and defeated Tiger Joginder Singh. Dara Singh kept on participating in many competitions and always won. His last tournament was in Delhi in June 1983.

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Dara Singh's movies & TV shows 

Dara Singh started his career as an actor in 1952 with Sangdil. The film was directed by R. C. Talwar and was an adaptation of the 1847 Charlotte Brontë classic novel, Jane Eyre. It cast Dilip Kumar, Madhubala and Leela Chitnis in lead roles and Dara Singh was seen as a stunt double in the film. He then went on to play many minor roles in different movies. His first major role was in Babubhai Mistry's film King Kong. The role brought him much fame. 

Then in the late 1980s, he went on to play the role of Hanuman in 'Ramayan'. The actor became very popular because of this role and later also starred as Bhima in various Mahabharata movies. His last film role was in the film Jab We Met. Jab We Met came out in 2007 and was a film written and directed by Imtiaz Ali. The film cast Shahid Kapoor as Aditya, Kareena Kapoor as Geet and Dara Singh as Geet's grandfather.

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Dara Singh's death

On July 7, 2012, the actor was admitted to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital as he had suffered a heart attack. A few days later, the news broke that his brain had been damaged due to the heart attack. On July 12, 2012 (aged 83), the actor breathed his last and was cremated at Juhu crematorium.

Facts 

• Dara Singh married twice 
• Dara Singh Singh joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in January 1998 and was the first sportsman to do so. 
• He was inducted into the Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame in 1996. 
• He started the Dara studio in Punjab. 
• On April 7, 2018, WWE inducted Dara Singh in WWE Hall of Fame Legacy class of 2018.