Gulshan Kumar

Gulshan Kumar Dua (5 May 1956 – 12 August 1997),[2] was an Indian businessman who was the founder of the T-Series music label (Super Cassettes Industries Ltd.),[3] and a Bollywood movie producer. He founded T-Series in the 1980s and established it as a leading record label in the 1990s.

Gulshan Kumar
Born	Gulshan Kumar Dua 5 May 1956 New Delhi, Delhi, India
Died	12 August 1997 (aged 41) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Cause of death	Ballistic trauma to upper body and head[1]
Nationality	Indian
Education	Deshbandhu College, Delhi University
Occupation	Businessman, film producer
Years active	1972–1997
Children	Bhushan Kumar, Tulsi Kumar and Khushali Kumar
Relatives	Krishan Kumar (brother)

In 1997, he was murdered by the Mumbai underworld syndicate D-Company. After his death, T-Series has since been run by his younger brother Krishan Kumar and son Bhushan Kumar.[4] His daughters Tulsi Kumar and Khushali Kumar are also playback singers.[5][6]

Biography

Gulshan Kumar Dua was the son of Chandrabhan Kumar Dua, a fruit juice vendor who worked the streets of the Daryaganj neighbourhood in the heart of Delhi. Dua started working with his father from an early age. He was a devoted worshiper of Shri Shiv Ji and Devi Parvati, as he was a follower of the Shaiva tradition of Hinduism.

Dua changed career paths when his family acquired a shop selling records and inexpensive audio cassettes, which foreshadowed the onset of a vast music empire.[7]

Music business and film career

Gulshan Kumar started his own audio cassette operation known as "Super Cassettes Industries," which turned in to a profitable business. He began a music production company in Noida. As his business started growing, he moved to Mumbai.[8][9]

His first movie in Bollywood was Lal Dupatta Malmal Ka in 1989. Next was the big hit Aashiqui in 1990 which is remembered for its music by Nadeem–Shravan. His other movies included Bahaar Aane Tak, Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin, Ayee Milan Ki Raat, Meera Ka Mohan, Jeena Marna Tere Sang and Bewafa Sanam.[9]

T-Series music label

During the life of Gulshan Kumar, T-Series emerged as one of the top music labels in India. It continues to be a major label.[10]

Today T-Series controls more than 60% share of the Indian music market. In international market, T-Series enjoys a turnover in excess of $4.2 million, and exports to 24 countries across six continents. In India, it has the largest distribution network of over 2500 dealers.

Film Acted

Year	Film	Credited as
		Director	Producer
1989	Lal Dupatta Malmal Ka	No	Yes
1990	Appu Raja	No	Yes
1990	Aashiqui	No	Yes
1990	Bahaar Aane Tak	No	Yes
1991	Ayee Milan Ki Raat	No	Yes
1991	Jeena Teri Gali Mein	No	Yes
1991	Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin	No	Yes
1992	Meera Ka Mohan	No	Yes
1992	Jeena Marna Tere Sang	No	Yes
1992	Sangeet	No	Yes
1993	Shabnam	No	Yes
1993	Aaja Meri Jaan	No	Yes
1993	Kasam Teri Kasam	No	Yes
1995	Bewafa Sanam	Yes	Yes
1995	Suryaputra Shanidev	No	Yes
1995	Satyanarayan Ki Virat Katha	No	Yes
1997	Char Dham	No	Yes

Assassination and death

Gulshan Kumar Dua lost his life in a shooting outside the Jeeteshwar Mahadev Mandir, a Hindu mandir dedicated to Lord Shiva of which he attended daily in Jeet Nagar, Andheri West suburb of Mumbai,[11] on 12 August 1997. He was shot 16 times.

On the day of the assassination, his bodyguard, provided by the Uttar Pradesh government was sick. Although he had received two threatening calls, on 5 and 8 August 1997, Kumar refused to pay the extortion money. The hired killers, including Rauf and Abdul Rashid, conducted reconnaissance for a month, but did not proceed because of the armed bodyguard. At 10.40 am, while returning from the temple, he was confronted by one of the assassins who said: "Bahut puja kar li, ab upar ja ke karna (you have done enough puja, now do it up there)." Initially, Kumar survived and sought shelter in nearby huts, but residents shut their doors. His driver Suraj was shot in both legs as he tried to shelter Kumar.[12]

A Mumbai underworld organisation called D-Company is considered to have been responsible for this assassination.[13][14] The police also accused film composer Nadeem Saifi of the music duo Nadeem-Shravan of having paid for the murder due to a personal dispute and fled the country after the murder. However, on 9 January 2001, Abdul Rauf Merchant (known as "Raja") confessed to being the murderer. On 29 April 2002, Sessions Judge M. L. Tahilyani sentenced Rauf to life imprisonment, stating that he was not imposing the death penalty because the prosecution had failed to prove that Rauf was a contract killer. The police alleged that Saifi paid Abu Salem, a known associate of Dawood Ibrahim, to assassinate Dua and assigned Rauf to the job, but it just so happened that Ibrahim and Abu Salem were already planning on murdering Dua as he had refused to pay protection money to D-Company as part of an extortion attempt. As per his family's wishes, Gulshan Kumar Dua was cremated in a shamshan (cremation ground) in Delhi.[15]

After the police's allegations against him, Nadeem Saifi had fled to the United Kingdom. In 2001, the case was taken to the London High Court, which rejected the Indian government's request for extradition on the ground that there was no prima facie case against Saifi. In August 2001, the prosecution's main witness, Mohammed Ali Hussain Shaikh, who had earlier claimed Saifi participated in the murder, eventually claimed that he didn't know Saifi and had never seen him.[16] Abu Salem also denied Nadeem's involvement on Indian national television. Saifi was also exonerated by four courts, including the House of Lords in the United Kingdom and the sessions court in Mumbai. Saifi eventually acquired British citizenship, and later moved to Dubai, where he runs a successful perfumery business.[17][18]

Abdul Rauf alias Daud Merchant was convicted in 2002 for the murder of Gulshan Kumar. He fled India after he was granted furlough by the Bombay high court in 2009. He was extradited from Bangladesh in 2016.[19] He is currently in the high-security Arthur Road jail in Mumbai.[20]

In late 1980s and early '90s, Bollywood was impacted by the Mumbai mafia dominance and extortions. The influence of organised crime in the film industry was such there were regular reports of film stars attending events hosted by mafia bosses and allegedly enjoying their patronage.[21] It is believed that Gulshan Kumar had refused to pay extortion to gangster Dawood Ibrahim.[22]

Legacy

In 2017, T-Series announced plans to produce a biographical film about Kumar titled Mogul – The Gulshan Kumar Story.[23]

See also

• Music of Bollywood

References

1. Koppikar, Smruti (25 August 1997). "Killing of Gulshan Kumar Reveals Mumbai Underworld's Nexus with Bollywood is Turning Nasty". India Today. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
2. Gulshan Kumar Archived 30 August 2013 at the Wayback Machine British Film Institute.
3. Indian film financing comes of age, 29 May 2004
4. About Us Archived 5 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine T Series Official website.
5. "The daughter of the legendary Gulshan Kumar of T Series Tulsi Kumar comes out with her maiden solo album]". www.newkerala.com.
6. "Watch: Gulshan Kumar's daughter Khushali makes screen debut with revived 'Mainu Ishq Da Lagya Rog'". DNA India. Retrieved 1 September 2020.
7. Gulshan! Rediff.com, 12 July 1997
8. "बॉलीवुड का सबसे विख्यात और 'कुख्यात' म्यूजिक मैन, जिसे मार डाला गया [Bollywood's most famous and "infamous" music man, who was murdered]". The Lallantop (India Today Group). 30 December 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
9. "Gulshan Kumar Biography – Gulshan Kumar Profile, Childhood, Life, Timeline". iloveindia.com. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
10. "Bollywood Cinema News | Bollywood Movie Reviews | Bollywood Movie Trailers – IndiaGlitz Bollywood". IndiaGlitz.com. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
11. Gulshan Kumar shot dead, scare in filmdom Archived 5 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine The Indian Express, 13 August 2001.
12. Koppikar, Smruti (25 August 1997). "Killing of Gulshan Kumar reveals Mumbai underworld's nexus with Bollywood is turning nasty". India Today.
13. Prakash, Aryan. "Gulshan Kumar murder mystery: Recalling the day when 16 bullets were pumped into him". Inuth. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
14. "The Mafia Calls The Shots". Outlook. 25 August 1997.
15. Stunned silence at Super Cassettes' Delhi factory The Indian Express, 13 August 2001.
16. "Gulshan murder: Approver denies knowing anything about the case". 8 August 2001.
17. Farooqui, Mazhar (11 May 2016). "Exclusive: 'I request Narendra Modi to help me get justice'". Gulf News.
18. Bollywood exile Nadeem Saifi seeks government apology, BBC, 19 February 2014
19. "Dawood aide Abdul Rauf to be sent back to India: Bangladesh minister". Hindustan Times. 18 January 2016.
20. "Daud Merchant lands in jail after deportation". The Daily Star. 11 November 2016.
21. "Gulshan Kumar murder mystery: Recalling the day when 16 bullets were pumped into him". 1 September 2017.
22. "Absence of gun-toting bodyguard made Gulshan Kumar an easy target". Hindustan Times. 12 November 2016.
23. "Mogul first look: Akshay Kumar to play Gulshan Kumar. Who was Gulshan Kumar?". The Indian Express. 15 March 2017.

External links

• Gulshan Kumar at IMDb
• The Gulshan Kumar Murder Homepage at Rediff.com