Nowadays, for any essay contest on the subject:'A sporting icon' the immediate person who comes to our mind is Sachin Tendulkar with $40 million endorsement or MS Dhoni with $42million endorsements.People nowadays tend to forget the unsung heroes who had made our nation proud right from the era of the BritishOne such amazing example is JANKIDAS MEHRA. Jankidas Mehra was a champion cyclist of world repute. He broke eight world cycling records between 1934-42.he represented India in the world Olympic Games in 1936 at Berlin. He was India’s sole representative at the empire games in1938 in Sydney, Australia and at the eastern games in 1940 Tokyo. Finally before the world sports congress meet in Zurich he met Mahatma Gandhi who put him in a moral dilemma... [h=3]Sports[/h]He served as the only Indian member of the International Olympic Committee at the 1936 Olympic Games in Berlin and the only Indian to have broken the world record in cycling between 1934 and 1942. he was comedian. He became later a well known writer, a director and a noted actor (from whose Mumbai estate Sanjana Kapoor’s Prithvi theatre now operates) Jankidas passed away in Mumbai on June 18, 2003.he was 93. Lets also notice that the nation had such amazing people. [h=3]Films[/h]Jankidas debuted in film playing a major role in Khazanchi (1941) produced in Lahore. He was seeen against till 1946 when he would appear in Dr. Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani. From then on he would continue to play roles with increasing vigour over the years. Jankidas is credited with being the first production designer in the Indian film industry and had designed several films including Pathar aur Paya and Warrant. As a production designer, Jankidas was responsible for the founding of many famous Indian actor careers. He was responsible for Madhubala's role in Sohrab Modi's Daulat in 1947 and introduced Meena Kumari in Nanabhai Bhatt's Hamara Ghar and Khusboo in Sunil Dutt's Dard Ka Rishta. He also introduced actress Mala Sinha in Hamlet, produced and directed by Kishore Sahu. In 1985 he wrote the script to the film Yaadon Ki Kasam. Jankidas was the recipient of numerous national and international awards. In May 1996, he was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Indian Motion Pictures Producers' Association. Jankidas was also an author and wrote numerous books on Bollywood and the acting profession. He published My Misadventures in Filmland and Acting for Beginners. In 1986, he undertook a fast unto death to seek tax benefits for the film industry and gave up his agitation after Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray intervened. [h=2]Death[/h]Jankidas was suffering from a heart ailment for a substantial period of time but was discharged from the local hospital two days before his death. He died of cardiac failure at his Juhu residence on Wednesday 18 June 2003. He was 93. Jankidas is survived by two sons, and two daughters. source
