Thursday,
September
27,
2007
New
Delhi
(ANI):
Prime
Minister
Manmohan
Singh
yesterday
released
an
autobiography
of
'evergreen" Hindi
movie
star
Dev
Anand
here.
Interestingly,
the
book
release
ceremony
coincided
with
both
Anand's
and
Singh's
birthdays.
The
actor's
memoir
titled
“Romancing
with
Life"
narrates
tales
of
his
journey
through
life
from
a
young
aspiring
actor
to
becoming
the
evergreen
hero
of
Indian
cinema.
Singh
lauded
Anand
calling
him
one
of
the
India's
most
'enduring
romantics
in
the
last
half
century'.
"At
84,
he
is
not
only
young
at
heart,
but
also
youthful
to
look
at.
I
am
sure
that
for
several
generations
of
his
fans,
he
will
always
be
remembered
as
a
delightfully
romantic
and
endearing
artist,"
Singh
said.
A
vegetarian
and
a
teetotaler,
Anand
said:
"A
book
which
is
in
my
hand,
my
autobiography
I
call
it
romance
with
life,
romancing
with
my
joy,
with
my
sorrow,
with
my
highs,
my
lows,
an
honest
depicting
of
man,
of
himself,
with
all
my
strengths
and
weaknesses."
With
a
green
scarf
draped
over
a
navy
blue
jacket,
his
hair
dyed
black
and
his
skin
still
taut,
Anand
retains
the
charm
of
a
mischievous
romantic
–
the
image
from
his
heyday
that
he
has
cultivated
over
a
career
spanning
60
years.
Credited
with
introducing
several
actresses
to
Bollywood,
Anand
lived
his
lover-boy
image
to
the
fullest,
wooing
heroines
with
songs
late
into
his
50s.
When
he
was
too
old
for
that,
he
turned
to
making
romantic
films.
Anand,
considered
the
epitome
of
the
suave,
urbane
gentleman,
was
seen
as
one
of
the
most
handsome
men
in
Indian
cinema
and
looked
strikingly
similar
to
Hollywood
hero
Gregory
Peck.
The
puff
in
his
hair
and
collared
shirt
became
a
rage
among
Indian
men,
and
his
trademark
singsong
delivery
and
penchant
for
nodding
while
speaking
were
all
heavily
copied.
Many
accused
his
acting
of
being
all
style
and
little
substance,
but
he
produced
some
of
the
biggest
cult
hits
in
Bollywood,
won
best
actor
awards
several
times
and
was
given
India's
highest
award
for
cinema.
His
personal
life
was
equally
dramatic.
He
fell
in
love
with
a
beautiful
Muslim
actress
he
saved
from
drowning
while
shooting
a
film.
After
her
grandmother
opposed
the
relationship,
the
actress
retreated
from
public
life
and
never
married.
Anand
has
acted
in,
directed
and
produced
more
than
110
films.
Anand
will
tour
India
with
his
465-page
book,
which
he
will
also
take
to
Frankfurt,
London,
Stockholm,
New
York,
Los
Angeles,
San
Francisco,
Atlanta
and
Canada.