Hyderabad, May 15 -- Who is the Bollywood character actor who fought alongside Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose in the INA, served as the assistant director to the legendary Bimal Roy, and acted in some of the landmark films of Hindi cinema? Perhaps only quiz experts may be able to answer this question but most film-goers would not know the answer.

The man was Nazir Hussain whose career as a character actor spanned 500 films. He was a favourite of several well known film makers including Dev Anand and he was also known as the father of Bhojpuri films. He was born on May 15, 1922 and led a life packed with action and adventure.

Nazir Hussain's family hailed from Uttar Pradesh which was then called United Provinces under British rule. Young Naz...