Dilip Kumar's autobiography launch

Launch of Autobiography 'Substance And The Shadow' of Bollywood Veteran and Legend Dilip Kumar will take place on June 9 in Mumbai. Ceremony will start by Lata Mangeshkar who will light the inaugural lamp and sing few lines for Dilip Sahab followed by Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan will do the honours of unveiling the book. Karan Johar will be seen hosting the launch event .

Documented by Dilip Kumar's close friend Udaya Tara Nayar, the event will have Big B will reading a verse or a paragraph from the book and Aamir reciting a poem, written by Prasoon Joshi.

Other close pals and industry veterans like Dharmendra will read a few lines on the thespian; Vyjayanthimala will speak few words in honour of the legendary actor.

Javed Ali and Shaan will perform a medley of Dilip Kumar's evergreen hits, which has been composed by Lalit Pandit. An audio visual-3D mapping video on the entire journey of Dilip Sahab will also be played at the event.

Shahrukh and Salman Khan might attend the launch event! Hema Malini, Madhuri Dixit, Tina and Anil Ambani, Kamal Haasan, Priyanka Chopra, Parineeti Chopra, Vidya Balan are also expected to grace the event!

Bollywood thespian Dilip Kumar's biography finally has a title and it will be released by singing legend Lata Mangeshkar at a grand event here June 9.

Said author Uday Tara Nayar: "The title 'Substance & The Shadow' was suggested by Dilip saab. The 'substance' refers to the actual person behind the legend and the 'shadow' is the mythical image that has come to surround his persona."

"Substance And The Shadow" would be released in the presence of all the biggest actors and directors of Hindi filmdom.

Born as Muhammad Yusuf Khan, he entered filmdom with the 1944 release "Jwar Bhata" and after that he went on to give classics like "Madhumati", "Shaheed", "Devdas", "Andaz", "Amar", "Mughal-E-Azam", "Ram Aur Shyam", "Karma" and "Saudagar".

His last film was "Quila" in 1998.

The long-awaited biography, which traces the 91-year-old's life from birth, will be released at the elaborate function by Lata, who is likely to sing a few lines of Dilip Saab's favourite song "Allah tero naam".

"It's the song that Yusuf saab would ring up Lataji and ask her to sing whenever he was restless. She would always oblige her Yusuf Bhaiyya. Lataji came to visit Dilip saab recently. He immediately recognised her and exclaimed, 'Meri choti bahen mujhse milne ayee hai'.

"She fed him his evening meal with her own hands. Sairaji (Dilip Kumar's wife and yesteryear actress Saira Banu) just watched the historic moment. We both feel no person is as worthy of releasing the book as Lataji."

Joining Lata on stage to release the book, would be Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan.

Shah Rukh Khan, whom Dilip saab and his wife regard as a son, won't be able to attend.

Aamir will recite a poem on Dilip saab's honour written by Prasoon Joshi.

Amitabh, who worked with him in "Shakti", is expected to speak about his regard for the thespian.

Lata and Madhuri Dixit will light the inaugural lamp, while Shaan and Javed Ali will sing a medley of Dilip Kumar hits arranged by composer Lalit Pundit.

Another highlight of the evening would be the audio-visual showing rare never-seen intimate moments of Dilip Kumar's life with his wife and family.

Shedding light on the event, Nayar said: "It's been a 10-year journey to put together the authorised biography of Yusuf saab. We've finally done it. It couldn't have happened without the active support of Yusuf saab and Sairaji. They helped me piece together the life of a man who is not just the greatest actor in the country but also a father-figure for me."

Dilip Kumar was crowned the Tragedy King of Bollywood for playing doomed lover in films like "Andaaz", "Baabul", "Mela", "Deedar" and "Jogan".