Everyone loved Rajesh Khanna the superstar, but very few actually knew him. Journalist Ali Peter John, a close friend of Rajesh Khanna, followed his career closely and kept in touch till the very end.  He shares some interesting facts about the icon with Patcy N:

I have been following Rajesh Khanna for 35 years. I used to meet him during inter-collegiate competitions. He was from Mumbai's KC College and I was from Bhavan's. I was junior to him. He and Amjad (Khan) participated in college dramas. Rajesh Khanna came to the movies after winning a talent contest, and 12 producers had to give him a break because that was in the contract. The producers were known as United Producers and the head was GP Sippy who produced Sholay.
 
So, when others were struggling, walking from studio to studio for a film role, Rajesh Khanna 'struggled' in an Impala. His first three films Aakhri Khat, Raaz and Baharon Ke Sapne -- were flops even though they were made by the best of directors Chetan Anand, Narendra Bedi and Nasir Hussain. That's when his struggle began, because no producer wanted to touch him and all the films that were launched were stalled.

Image: Rajesh Khanna in Raaz