Bollywood's most successful actor has 74 hits, more than Shah Rukh, Salman Khan, Amitabh, yet was never called superstar

Even though this star had more hits than Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan, he was never called a ‘superstar’ for a rather academic reason.

There are several parameters to measure success in cinema for lead stars. One may argue that the actor with the most money made at the box office is the most successful. But that makes it unfair for superstars of the yesteryears as inflation means that even modest films today make more than the all-time grossers of the 70s and 80s. Others argue that the actor with the most hits has the right to be called the most successful. By that logic, one 'under-rated' star manages to topple even the Khans and Amitabh Bachchan to be crowned the winner. (

Bollywood's most successful actor has more hits than even Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan.

Bollywood's most successful actor

Dharmendra has the distinction of delivering the most hits as an actor in the Hindi film industry. The actor has a record 74 hits to his name in films where he was either the lead or had a substantial role. The actor managed this by being prolific more than any other contemporary or junior. In a career that has spanned over five decades, Dharmendra has appeared in over 240 films. Of these, 94 have been successful (recovering their investments), and 74 have had the distinction of being called hits. This includes 7 blockbusters, and 13 super hits, notably Sholay, the all-time highest-grosser of Indian cinema.

How Dharmendra fares against 'superstars'

This might surprise fans of Amitabh Bachchan, who is widely regarded as the biggest star in Indian cinema history. But he has fewer hits than Dharmendra, with 56 hits in 153 films. As he has done fewer films, he has fewer hits even though his 'hit rate' is higher. Among the Khans, Salman is on the top with 38 hits, followed by Shah Rukh with 34, and Aamir with 20. Other prominent hitmakers include Jeetendra (56), Mithun Chakraborty (50), Rajesh Khanna (38), and Akshay Kumar (39).

Why Dharmendra was never called a superstar

Dharmendra was always a prominent name in Hindi cinema, but never considered one of the topmost stars. The primary reason for that was that he was seen as a support act for bigger stars when he first started. By the time he became a lead actor in his own right, his biggest hits were multi-starrer ensemble films. In the 80s, he led several action hits but they were all low-budget high-grossers. The hits of Amitabh Bachchan and Vinod Khanna grossed more. Hence, while he was respected, despite his plethora of hits, Dharmendra was never considered in the same league as Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna, or Dilip Kumar.