sets and the former defender recalled how the star had shown his hospitality i went to meet him a few times when i was in bombay at the himalaya and the nataraj studios the first time i went there he came over to me and bellowed in an affectionate manner aise khada kyun hain why are you standing there he took me to the director and introduced me bada player hai india ke liye khelta hai isse baithne do hes a big player plays for india lets find him a place to sit he truly was one of those people who was pure at heart there was no malice in the man and he was a very good actor too this is a huge loss for india bhattacharya was quoted saying by the all india football federation subhash bhowmick who was a member of the indian bronze medalwinning squad in the 1970 asian games has himself been an avid fan of kumar films mughaleazam 1960 and ganga jamuna 1961 were two of many kumar classics that had captivated bhowmick it was an honour to see such a great superstar come to watch our matches not only the club matches but he was also an avid follower of the national team he recalled this is a huge loss for the world of art and culture he was one of the first true superheroes of indian cinema said bhowmick former blue tigers captain prasanta banerjee who had also represented india in the 1984 afc asian cup recalled kumar as someone who loved the beautiful game with all his heart i had first met him in the rovers cup in bombay when he was the chief guest in the 1980 final east bengal versus mohammedan sporting later when i was playing for mohammedan sporting he had visited the club a few times as well and we had several chats banerjee informed when i got to chat with him i understood his love for football he knew me by my name for me that was a big honour he was such a legend he loved watching football with all his heart and had come to watch a number of matches from the stands he said paying rich tribute to the departed bollywood icon