Syed Musa Abbas Raza, (Urdu: سیّد مُوسٰی عبّاس رضا; 25 December 1925 – 11 June 1982) better known as Santosh Kumar (Urdu: سنتوش کُمار), was a Pakistani film actor who was popular in the 1950s and 1960s. He is also known as The First Romantic Hero of Pakistan and is often recognized for his role in Pakistani cinema.^[1] He was from an Urdu-speaking family from Lahore, Pakistan. His brother Darpan was also a film actor during the same period, while his other brother S. Suleman was a film director.^[2]

Santosh Kumar's birth name was Syed Musa Raza.^[3][2][4] He was born in 1925 in Lahore, British India. He graduated from Osmania University, Hyderabad, British India.^[2] He then passed the ICS examination and was waiting to work as a civil servant in the government, before a friend dissuaded him to look towards cinema instead.^[5]

After the Partition of India in 1947, Santosh Kumar migrated to Lahore, Pakistan with his family.^[3]

Owing to his education and awareness, Santosh Kumar was always designated to lead the entourage to represent Pakistan in meetings held abroad, and because of this became known as the foreign minister of the Pakistani film industry. This was revealed by him in one of his interviews broadcast by the Radio Pakistan in the mid sixties.

The first Nigar Award for best actor in the history of Nigar Awards was presented to him in film Waada (1957). Then he won the Best Actor Nigar Awards for 1962 and 1963.^[6] Finally he was awarded Sitara-i-Imtiaz Award by the President of Pakistan in 2010 long after his death.^[7] Shaam Dhalay (1960) is the only movie he produced, directed and played the lead role in.^[6][3]

Santosh Kumar was Pakistan's superstar film hero, along with Sudhir, but he was the first-ever top romantic hero. His first film was Ahinsa in 1947 in India. In Pakistan, his first film was Beli in 1950, and in the same year he became film hero of the first-ever Pakistani silver jubilee Urdu film Do Ansoo (1950).^[3]

Initially, he was married to Jamila Begum, but subsequently married actress Sabiha Khanum on 1 October 1958 and had three children together including a son named Syed Ahsan Raza and two daughters named Fareeha Shaharyar and Afia Chaudhry. Santosh's grand daughter Sarish Khan is a model and actress.^[3]

Santosh Kumar died on 11 June 1982 at age 56.^[3][6][4][2]

• List of Lollywood actors