Raj Kapoor

He built R.K. Films from the ground up, producing and directing his own blockbusters — Awaara and Shree 420 — that grossed record sums domestically and deep into the Soviet Union. "The Showman" became a working-class hero across Asia, Africa, and the Soviet bloc, his tramp persona borrowed from Chaplin but laced with Indian melodrama and socialist undertones. The Kapoor name endures as a production house legacy, his descendants still monetising his classics through re-releases. He mentored Shankar-Jaikishan, launched his entire family, and created Bollywood's first dynasty.