The dilapidated ancestral home of legendary actor Dilip Kumar here in Pakistan is at risk of collapse as the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government is yet to acquire the building despite it being declared a national heritage by the federal government.
The local people of the Qissa Khawani Bazaar in Peshawar, where the house is located, contended that dispute over its ownership has also not been resolved by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government yet.
The house is located in a congested area and can be reached only through a narrow six-foot wide and 33-foot long street, making it difficult for visitors to approach it.
The dispute between the owner of the house and the previous provincial government over the monetary transaction still needs to be resolved, whereas the present government has not provided any funds for purchasing the house, the local people said while celebrating the actor’s 94th birthday on Sunday.
Extremely dilapidated
The condition of the house is extremely dilapidated and it may collapse any time, they added.
The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government had passed the antiquity act to look after properties declared national heritage, but the actor’s house has not been taken over under the said law, they said.
The legendary actor, born Yousuf Khan in Peshawar in 1922, is popular in both countries. For years, there have been requests in Pakistan for salvaging his ancestral home.
The actor, also known as ‘Tragedy King’ for his iconic portrayal of melancholy characters, is so adored in Pakistan that the nation conferred on him its highest civilian award, Nishan-i-Imtiaz (Order of Excellence) in 1998.
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had last year declared the actor’s house a ‘national heritage’, that can promote close cultural relations between India and Pakistan.