Waheed Murad: The Tragic Rise and Fall of Pakistan's Original Chocolate Hero
In short: Known as the Chocolate Hero, Waheed Murad mesmerized South Asian cinema during the 1960s and 1970s. As a producer, actor, and writer, he redefined the Pakistani silver screen. Yet, his meteoric rise eventually gave way to professional isolation, personal health struggles, and a mysterious, premature death at age 45.
Born in 1938, Waheed Murad emerged as a cultural icon in Pakistan, celebrated for his charming expressions and tender voice. He began his career with a cameo in 1959, but his breakthrough came in 1964 with Heera Aur Pathar. By 1966, he produced and starred in Armaan, which became the first Pakistani film to celebrate a platinum jubilee, running for 75 weeks. The film also introduced South Asia to its first pop song, 'Ko Ko Korina,' cementing Murad's status as a trailblazer in the industry.
Murad’s influence was unparalleled; he acted in 125 feature films and earned 32 awards, including the Sitara-e-Imtiaz, awarded posthumously in 2010. However, by the late 1970s, his career began to decline. Facing professional rejection and personal turmoil, including his wife’s departure to the United States, Murad struggled with substance abuse and severe health issues. In 1981, he underwent stomach removal surgery due to ulceration, yet he continued to seek work with a desperate intensity that unsettled his former peers.
His final years were marked by physical decline and a sense of abandonment. After a car accident in 1983 left a scar on his face, he planned surgery to restore his appearance for his final film, Hero. Tragically, he died on 23 November 1983, found dead in a home with an unidentified substance in his mouth. Whether his death was a heart attack or suicide remains unclear. Today, he is remembered through tributes, including a 2019 Google Doodle and a street named in his honor in Lahore.
The legacy of the Chocolate Hero remains complex. While his early work set box office records and defined a generation of Pakistani film, his later years highlight the fragility of stardom. Even decades after his passing, his impact persists, as seen in the 2022 inclusion of 'Ko Ko Korina' in the American series Ms. Marvel, proving his enduring, if sometimes controversial, cultural footprint.
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