Raaj Kumar (8 October 1926 – 3 July 1996), born Kulbhushan Pandit, was a Hindi film actor. Raaj Kumar started out as sub-inspector i.a.s. of Mumbai Police in the late 1940s before he turned to acting with the 1952 film Rangeeli. He appeared in the Oscar-nominated 1957 film Mother India and went onto star in over 70 Hindi films in a career that spanned over four decades.