Actor Jeetendra (April 7, 1942), better known as 'Jumping Jack' during the Sixties, because of his vigorous dancing style, turns a sprightly 68. Today, the actor, whose real name is Ravi Kapoor, touched the heights of popularity in the seventies and the eighties, with his trademark style of white trousers, white shirt, along with white shoes.

Jeetendra's story is definitely one of luck. He began his career with V Shataram's Navrang, not as a hero but as a double for actress Sandhya! But he must have created an impression on Shantaram because the venerable director gave him a big break as hero in Geet Gaya Patharon Ne. That was 1964 and Jeetendra never looked back since then. Yes, there was a period when even he was eclipsed by the phenomenon called Amitabh Bachchan, like almost every one else was. But he shrugged off those times as he bounced back, riding the wave of Hindi remakes of South Indian potboilers, which were a rage during the Eighties. Some of prominent films from this period were films like Himmatwala, Tohfa, Mawaali and Justice Chowdhury opposite mostly Reena Roy, Moushumi Chatterjee, Sridevi and Jayaprada. In the Sixties and Seventies, however, his hit films included Farz, Humjoli, Caravan, Bidai, Banphool opposite the leading heroines of those times, like Asha Parekh, Leena Chandavarkar, Mumtaz and Babita. He was never taken seriously as an actor by critics or even the common viewer. But that was before he shed his white shirt, trouser and shoes and donned the kurta pyjama and spectacles for director Gulzar. The sensitive director cast him in some of films like Parichay opposite Jaya Bhaduri; and Khushboo and Kinara opposite Hema Malini. He managed to reveal the actor in him in these films. Despite never being overly talented, Jeetendra was astute enough to cash in on the market. So though his southern sojourn was not marked by great films, he managed to garner quite a few hits. An astute businessman, he entered the television industry with his daughter Ekta Kapoor's Balaji Telefilms, much before the soap boom hit the small screen. Having more or less hung his boots now, we are sure the actor must be pleased with the manner in which his children, Ekta and Tusshar are handling their careers. Movietalkies.com would like to wish 'Jumping Jack' Jeetendra a very happy birthday!