India, April 26 -- The term superstar may have arrived late in the Bollywood lexicon, but superstars had existed right from the early years of the industry. Even in the days when Bombay was not the filmmaking capital of India, big stars were ruling the roost. The first of them captivated the audience like nobody has since and set the template for what superstardom is. And yet, his journey has been briefer than anyone's since.

Kundan Lal Saigal gained fame as KL Saigal in the 30s and 40s. Saigal was an extraordinary singer and a hugely popular actor, the original Hindi cinema superstar. Born in Jammu to the tehsildar at the court of the Maharaja of J&K, Saigal learnt singing from his mother, who used to take him to bhajans and kirtans as ...