New Delhi, July 9 -- Few figures in Indian cinema evoke the same reverence and mystique as actor-director Guru Dutt. An auteur in the truest sense, Dutt's unique body of work continues to be dissected, celebrated, and rediscovered, as today marks the celebration of more than a century of the legendary maestro of Bollywood.
Born over a 100 years ago as Vasanth Kumar Shivashankar Padukone in 1925 in Bangalore, Guru Dutt's early life was shaped by an artistic upbringing and a fascination with classical dance and theatre.
Coming from humble beginnings, he began his career as a telephone operator before joining Prabhat Film Company in Pune, where he worked as a choreographer and assistant director. A stint with Uday Shankar's dance academy...