#GoldenFrames: Pictorial biography of Om Prakash

Om Prakash was a character actor who started his career in 1942; he was a famous supporting actor from the 1950s until the 1980s. Prakash was a household name with 307 movies to his credit. In his five-decade career, the actor was good in almost every character he played. Besides writing and acting, Prakash was also trained in classical music.

In This Pic : Om Prakash

Born on December 19, 1919, in Jammu, Om Prakash Chibber came from an affluent family. Even as a child, he was inclined towards arts. Prakash used to participate in Ram Leela during Dussehra. He also used to play the role of Kamla in the stage play by the famous Dewan Mandir Natak Samaj Jammu.

In This Pic : Om Prakash

Pic Courtesy : BCCL - Non Copyright

Prakash continued to follow his dreams and landed a job in All India Radio as a singer and actor in 1937. He earned a monthly salary of ₹ 25. Prakash was known as ‘Fateh Din’, a radio personality. His programmes made him popular all over Lahore and Punjab. He was a comic genius. He used to write plays and dialogues for radio.

In This Pic : om prakash

Pic Courtesy : BCCL - Non Copyright

One day Om Prakash received a letter from Dalsukh Pancholi to ask him to join movies. Without any delay, Prakash left for Lahore from Jammu. Apparently, Pancholi didn't recollect sending a letter to Prakash until Pran cleared the misunderstanding that Fateh Din is Om Prakash.

In This Pic : Om Prakash

He was paid ₹80 for his first major role in 'Daasi' (1944). Following the partition, Prakash came down to Mumbai. He had not eaten a decent meal in days during this period. The actor happened to order food in a restaurant that he couldn’t pay for; he was desperate. After finishing his meal, a penniless Prakash walked up to the restaurant owner and told him that he would do whatever to repay him. Prakash told the owner that he would be a successful actor one day. The owner believed him for some reason and told him to pay whenever possible. The actor never forgot the incident and, later in life, never shied away from paying it forward.

In This Pic : Om Prakash

Pic Courtesy : BCCL - Non Copyright