Superstar Rajesh Khanna’s famous bungalow and Meerut connection

Superstar Rajesh Khanna’s bungalow. Did you know super star Rajesh Khanna's 'Aashirwad' bungalow had a very big connection with film star Bharat Bhushan of Meerut and super star Rajendra Kumar One of the finest actors of Hindi cinema, Bharat Bhushan was an artist who was totally consumed by his craft. He was the romantic heart throb of the 1950s whose good looks and charm endeared him to women. The 1950s were ruled by larger than life personas such as Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand and Dilip Kumar, but yet Bhushan was able to carve out a niche for himself. His quiet, regal demeanour combined with his good looks and a penchant for playing tragic characters contributed to his entire persona. Did you know Rajesh Khanna's 'Aashirwad' bungalow never proved to be fruitful for anyone? And to everyone's surprise, Rajesh Khanna was not the first owner of this house. It all began when a young and charming man from Meerut came to Mumbai to test his luck in the Hindi Cinema and won hearts with his debut film 'Baiju Bawra'. We are talking about actor Bharat Bhushan. When Bharat Bhushan was at the peak in his career he purchased a sea-facing bungalow in Juhu. Things were going well until one day the actor decided to try his and into film production. He produced a few films out of which 'Barsaat Ki Ek Raat' was a super hit. This urged him into producing more films but unfortunately, none worked resulting in the actor incurred heavy losses. He had to sell all that he had earned so far along with the bungalow. During that time a star was emerging in the industry, Rajendra Kumar. With a few hits in his kitty, Rajendra Kumar had a good run at the box office and he purchased the bungalow from Bharat Bhushan in merely 25 thousand which was a huge amount in those days. He named the bungalow after his daughter Dimple. The actor gained a lot of fame after that but soon his stardom began to fade. During that time a star was emerging in the industry, Rajendra Kumar. With a few hits in his kitty, Rajendra Kumar had a good run at the box office and he purchased the bungalow from Bharat Bhushan in merely 25 thousand which was a huge amount in those days. He named the bungalow after his daughter Dimple. The actor gained a lot of fame after that but soon his stardom began to fade. Rajesh being a superstar, many producers waited eagerly to sign a film with kaka, as he was fondly called. Similarly, a south filmmaker Chinnapa wished to work with Rajesh Khanna for his Hindi movie, but Rajesh Khanna didn't show much interest in the film and just to avoid the producer he quoted 10 lakhs to play the role on a condition that payment must be made in advance. At that time an actor would charge only 2 to 3 lakhs for a film. The producer agreed and gave 10 lakhs to Rajesh Khanna in advance, the film was a super hit at the box office. The film was 'Hathi Mere Saathi'. Now Rajesh Khanna was the new owner of the bungalow but Rajendra Kumar gave the bungalow on one condition that the name would be changed to something else but not Dimple. Rajesh Khanna agreed and changed the name to 'Aashirwad' Aashirwad proves to be unlucky for all owners Rajesh Khanna began staying in Aashirwad, he even got married to Dimple Kapadia in the same house. But that bungalow didn't prove to be lucky for him as well. His marital life was never happy and he also began to face downfall in his career. In his last days, Rajesh Khanna used to sit in one room of his bungalow with a glass of liquor but never thought of selling the bungalow. After the actor's death, the bungalow was sold to businessman Shashi Kiran Shetty and the property was distributed amongst his daughters. And not to forget the first owner of the bungalow Bharat Bhushan lived the rest of his life in a slum and often gazed the bungalow while traveling from buses that were once owned by him. This is the irony of life. Aashirwad was never an Aashirwad for anyone who wished to stay in that house.