new delhi actordirector manoj kumar who converted celluloid patriotism into a profitable boxoffice brand will be conferred the dadasaheb phalke award for 2015 the union ministry of information and broadcasting announced on friday the award was given on the recommendations of a committee set up by the government the jury comprised lata mangeshkar asha bhosle salim khan nitin mukesh and anup jalota kumar personified the nationalist hero in popular hindi cinema often named bharat in his movies nationalism can be seen in a melange of shades made at the request of then prime minister lal bahadur shastri his directorial debut upkar 1967 deftly translated the slogan jai jawan jai kisan into compelling screenplay even today no song betters the image of the idealised nation more than mere desh ki dharti sona ugle purab aur paschim 1970 extolled the virtues of pure traditional east versus corrupting modern west roti kapda aur makaan 1974 took on the enemies withinthe black marketeers all these movies were boxoffice majors but none was bigger than the blockbuster kranti 1981 a lavishly mounted epic against the british raj occasionally kumar could be voyeuristic too evident in the way the camera ogles at the westernised woman characters in purab aur paschim and roti kapda aur makaan had a gruesome and horribly long rape scene kumars enduring association with patriotic cinema began with shaheed 1965 but in a career spanning nearly four decades he was also known as a star with a penchant for suspense thrillers woh kaun thi gumnaam poonam ki raat and anita the abbottabadborn kumar shifted to delhi at the age of 10 during partition a graduate from delhis hindu college kumar made his debut in fashion 1957 but tasted real success only with the redoubtable vijay bhatts hariyali aur rasta 1962 mukesh being his playback between the years 196470 kumar delivered a clutch of hits himalaya ki god mein 1965 sawan ki ghata 1966 do badan 1966 and neel kamal 1968 he also acted with dilip kumar in the flop aadmi 1968 as kumars career progressed he developed a drawlish dialogue delivery with his signature hand movement across his face becoming more pronounced critics scoffed at it but his fans didnt mind in the seventies he excelled in action movies like sanyasi 1975 and dus numbri 1976 kranti was his last roar at the boxoffice his ambitious venture clerk was released after inordinate delays in 1989 the flop had two pakistani stars mohammed ali and zeba a celluloid attempt at crossborder friendship