In Pictures: Revisiting the timeless love story of Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu

Legendary actor Dilip Kumar left the world to meet with his creator in the wee hours of Wednesday. 

The actor lived a fulfilling life with his beloved wife Saira Banu. The two, who stood apart by 22 years, never let the age difference come in the way of their happily married life.

Take a look at the evergreen love story of Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu, who stood with each other against all odds.

In the words of Saira, she was a fan of Kumar since she was a 12-year-old girl.

 "I was not just another girl smitten by Dilip Kumar. For me, it was no castle in the air because I had given my dream the strong foundation of faith- faith in myself and faith in God." 

In another interview, Saira Banu revealed the butterflies she felt in her stomach the first time she met Dilip Kumar in person.

"When he smiled at me and remarked that I was a pretty girl, I could feel my whole being taking wing and flying rapturously. I knew somewhere deep within me that I was going to be his wife."

In his memoir titled 'Dilip Kumar: The Substance and the Shadow', the actor himself Khan described how he was smitten by Saira during their first meet.

"When I alighted from my car and entered the beautiful garden that leads to the house, I can still recall my eyes falling on Saira standing in the foyer of her new house looking breathtakingly beautiful in a brocade sari," he penned in the memoir.

"I was taken aback because she was no longer the young girl I consciously avoided working with because I thought she would look too young to be my heroine," he recalled the time when he refused to do a film with her because of the age difference.

"She had indeed grown to full womanhood and was, in reality, more beautiful than I thought she was. I simply stepped forward and shook her hand and for us, time stood still."

Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu eventually tied the knot in the year 1966. Saira was 22 and Dilip was 44.

In 2014, Saira Banu had said about Dilip Kumar, "I am still head over heels in love with my Kohinoor, Yousuf Sahab, the way I was when I first felt attracted to him as a 12 year-old," she confessed.

"Ours has been as good and enduring a marriage as so many marriages that have survived the ups and downs for four decades. No marriage is perfect. How can it be, when as human beings we are not perfect? It is mutual love, respect and adoration that keep a marriage ticking," she concluded.