Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu House: Pali Hill Bungalow to Undergo Massive Transformation

Dilip Kumar, the veteran actor, is often referred to as the King of Tragedy due to the poignant roles he portrayed on the silver screen. His personal story of going from rags to riches is as exciting as any of the numerous hit movies he has delivered. Throughout the 1950s and 60s, he remained the undisputed king of Bollywood. His fans adored him even more after he fell in love with the epic beauty Saira Bau and later married her.

During the peak of their careers, Dilip Kumar and his actor wife Saira Banu symbolised the epitome of wealth and opulence. The bungalow owned by the couple in Pali Hill is spread over a 21,500 square feet area. However, the Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu house is now set to undergo a makeover and redevelopment. While efforts to redevelop the land were initiated by the great actor himself, his death in 2021 has halted the endeavour. Thane-based real estate company Ashar Group has recently launched the redevelopment project and is set to build a high-end residential complex here. Here's what we know about the project.

• Late Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu's house in Pali Hill, Bandra, is an iconic structure that has served as a landmark for several decades. Apart from being connected to the leading reel-to-real-life couple, it has been one of the properties that has defined Pali Hill's rise as one of the poshest residential localities in Mumbai.  
• According to news reports, the property was purchased by the actor in the year 1953 for INR 1.4 lakh. Bungalow No 16, as it came to be called for a long time, remained the crown jewel among his assets. The actor lived in this bungalow when he delivered some of his spectacular hits, including Naya Daur, Mughal-E-Azam, Devdas, and Dil Diya Dard Liya. He married his on-screen co-star and legendary beauty Saira Banu in 1966, later moving into her home a few buildings away while his brothers continued to live in the bungalow. Bungalow number 16 remained delipidated, but the Ashar Group now plans to restore the building to its glory days.
• Even after the move, this bungalow remained a famous attraction, with fans thronging the street hoping to get a glimpse of the couple. Pali Hill continues to remain a star-studded neighbourhood with residents such as Amir Khan, Sanjay Dutt, and Ranbir Kapoor.
• In 2006, Dilip Sa'ab, as the actor was known, initiated talks with several real estate companies but had to cancel the contract with two different builders till he finally inked the deal with the Ashar Group in 2016.
• The redeveloped property will be named The Legend as a tribute to Dilip Kumar's stature as one of the most revered actors of Bollywood. Apart from 4 and 5 BHK luxury apartments, the project will also be home to a 2000-square-foot museum that showcases the actor's Hindi film journey. It is likely, though, that the museum will have a separate entrance, and the residential section will remain private.
• The proposed 10-11 storied building will be home to about 15 boutique apartments with areas ranging between 3200 and 700 square feet. Each residence is likely to be priced between INR 4 crore to INR 10.5 crore. The total revenue expected from the redevelopment is pegged at INR 900 crore. The entire project will likely have a developed area of 1.75 lakh square feet.
• According to the MahaRERA website, the redevelopment of the Dilip Kumar Saira Banu house is likely to be completed by the year 2027. This is the second grand project undertaken by the Ashar Group in Pali Hill. The group had previously developed the prestigious Navroze by Asar project with several 5000 square feet luxury apartments.
• The residences are designed for HNI individuals. These homes are expected to be the perfect amalgamation of opulence and design, creating vertical villas in the form of apartments.

Dilip Kumar's net worth was estimated to be about INR 650 crore at the time of his death. The Bollywood power couple are estimated to have received INR 350 crore when the redevelopment project was initiated. This will be refunded to the developer after she starts to receive payments from the sale of these apartments.