Saturday 31 March 2012


Amjad Khan

Amjad Khan
Born12 November 1940
HyderabadAndhra Pradesh,India
Died27 July 1992 (aged 51)
MumbaiMaharashtraIndia
Other namespopular as Gabbar Singh
OccupationActor
Years active1970–1990
SpouseSheila Khan
Amjad Khan (Urduامجد خانHindiअमजद ख़ान; 12 November 1940 – 27 July 1992) was an acclaimed Indian actor and director.[1] He worked in over 130 films in a career spanning nearly twenty years. He enjoyed popularity for his villainous roles in Hindi films, the most famous being the unforgettable Gabbar Singh in the 1975 classic Sholay and of Dilawar in Muqaddar Ka Sikandar(1978).

Early life

Khan was born in Hyderabad to Muslim parents. He was the son of legendary actor Jayant. He was the brother of fellow actor Imtiaz Khan and Inayat Khan who acted in one film. In 1957, he was cast in the movie Ab Dili Dur Nahin.
Khan did his schooling at St Theresa's High School, Bandra. He attended R D National College, Bandra and was the general secretary — the highest elected student body representative. He had already gained a reputation of being a heavyweight "dada" and was feared and respected.
Career
Before Amjad came to films he was a theatre actor. His first role was as at the age of 17 in the film Ab Dilli Dur Nahin (1957). He made appearances in minor roles with father Jayant in a few films. He assisted K. Asif in Love and God in the late 1960s and had made a brief appearance in the film which would have been his official debut. But it was left incomplete after Asif's death in 1971, and it ended up releasing in 1986. In 1973 he made his debut in Hindustan Ki Kasam.
In 1975 he was offered the role of dacoit Gabbar Singh for the film Sholay (literally meaning flames) by Salim who was one of its writers. For preparation for the role, Amjad read Abhishapth Chambal, a book on Chambal dacoits written byTaroon Kumar Bhaduri (actress Jaya Bhaduri's father). Amjad shot to stardom with the movie. His portrayal of Gabbar Singh is considered by many to be the first depiction of pure evil on the screen in Indian Cinema: a totally evil character who doesn't make excuses for his evil. His mannerisms and dialogues have become an integral part of Bollywood lexicon and spawned numerous parodies and spoofs. Sholay went on to become a blockbuster and, as of yet, it is the highest grossing movie in India. Although it boasted an ensemble cast of superstars including DharmendraAmitabh Bachchan and Sanjeev Kumar, he stole the thunder with his unorthodox and eerie dialogue delivery that was perfectly apposite to the total lack of empathy his character was supposed to convey. Even today people fondly remember his dialogues and mannerisms. He later appeared in advertisements as Gabbar Singh endorsing Britannia Glucose Biscuits (popularly known as "Gabbar Ki Asli Pasand"), and it was the first incidence of a villain being used to sell a popular product.
After the success of Sholay Khan continued to play villain roles in many subsequent Hindi films in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s — superseding, in terms of popularity and demand, the earlier Indian actor, Ajit — portraying more sophisticated and urbane criminal bosses, mastermind of bank robberies, murders and conspiracies to seize power. He often acted as villain opposite Amitabh Bachchan as the hero.
Khan was also acclaimed for playing many unconventional roles. In the critically acclaimed film Shatranj Ke Khiladi (1977) (based on the novel of the same title) by Munshi Premchand and directed by Satyajit Ray, Khan played the helpless and deluded monarch Wajid Ali Shah, whose kingdom, Avadh, is being targeted by British colonialists from the British East India Company. It is the only movie in which he dubbed song. He played many positive roles such as in Dada,Yaarana (1981) and Laawaris (1981) as Amitabh's friend and father respectively. In the art film Utsav (1984), he portrayed Vatsayana, the author of the Kama Sutra. In 1988 he appeared in the Merchant-Ivory English film The Perfect Murder as an underworld don. He excelled at playing comical characters in films such as Qurbani (1980), Love Story, and Chameli Ki Shaadi (1986). In 1991, he reprised his role as Gabbar Singh in Ramgarh Ke Sholay, a parody of the legendary film which included look-alikes of Dev Anand and Amitabh Bachchan.
He ventured into directing for a brief period in the 1980s directing and starred in Chor Police (1983), which was a success, and Ameer Aadmi Gareeb Aadmi (1985) which failed to do well at the box office.
Amjad was the president of the Actors Guild association. He was respected in the film industry. He would intervene and negotiate disputes between actors and directors/producers. One such dispute occurred when Dimple Kapadia agreed to play a mother role and later backed down. The entire film producer community tried to boycott her. Amjad intervened on behalf of the Actors Guild.
Death
In 1986, Khan had near-fatal accident on the Bombay-Goa road, when he drove his car into a tree while trying to avoid a boulder. The drugs administered to him caused a serious weight problem for the rest of his life. As a result of his increasing weight, he died in 1992 after suffering from heart failure at the age of 51. Several of the films he completed were released after his death, right until 1996. His funeral procession passed from his house in Pali Hill to the Muslim Burial in Bandra East. It was attended by all major movie stars at that time.
Personal life
In 1972, he married Shehla Khan; the following year, she gave birth to their first child, Shadaab Khan, who acted in a few films. He also had a daughter Ahlam Khan and another son Seemaab Khan.

Filmography


YearFilmCharacter/RoleNotes
1957Ab Dilli Dur NahinLachhuas Amjad, child artist
1961Mayaas Amjad, child artist
1973Hindustan Ki Kasam
1975SholayGabbar SinghNominatedFilmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor
1976Charas
1976Ginny Aur Johnny
1977AafatShera
1977Aakhri Goli
1977Chakkar Pe ChakkarAvdhut
1977Hum Kisi Se Kum NahinSaudagar Singh
1977Kasam Khoon KiBhajirao
1977Khoon Pasina
1977Palkon Ki Chhaon MeinNattu
1977ParvarishMangal Singh
1977Ram BharoseBhanupratap
1977Shatranj Ke KhiladiWajid Ali Shah
1978Apna KhoonKhan
1978BesharamDigvijay Singh/Dharamdas
1978BandieKanchan V. Singh
1978BhookhThakur Harnam Singh
1978Des PardesBhoot Singh/Avtar Singh
1978Ganga Ki SaugandThakur Jashwant Singh
1978Heeralal PannalalPanther
1978InkaarRaj Singh 'Kidnapper'
1978Kasme VaadeJuda, the HunchbackGuest Appearance
1978Khoon Ki PukaarZalim Singh/Sardar
1978Muqaddar
1978Muqaddar Ka SikandarDilawar
1978Phool Khile Hain Gulshan GulshanKalandhar
1978Ram Kasam
1978Sawan Ke Geet
1979AhsaasPradeep Rai Choudhry
1979Atmaram
1979Chambal Ki Raani
1979DadaFazlu
1979Do ShikaariZorro
1979Hamare TumhareMr. Chaudhary, Sonia's Father
1979Hum Tere Aashiq HainThakur Shamsher Singh
1979Lok ParlokRam Shastri/Boston Strangler/
Raman Raghav/Ram Ghulam
1979MeeraBadshah Akbar
1979Mr. NatwarlalVikram Singh
1979Raakhi Ki SaugandhJagganath 'Jagga'/Yahwar Pahwar Khan
1979Sarkari Mehman
1979SuhaagVikram Kapoor
1980Bombay 405 MilesVeer Singh
1980Chambal Ki Kasam
1980JwalamukhiDaku Sher Singh
1980KhanjarPrince/Swamiji
1980Lahu Pukarega
1980Loot MaarVikram
1980Pyaara Dushman
1980QurbaniInspector Amjad Khan
1980Ram BalramSuleiman Seth
1980Yari DushmaniBirju
1981Anusandhan
1981Barsaat Ki Ek RaatKaliram H. Sahu
1981Chehre Pe ChehraKanhus, Martha's brother
1981CommanderCommander Singh
1981DhuaanSunil's boss
1981Gehra Zakhm
1981Hum Se Badkar KaunChandan/Bholaram
1981Jail YatraKuldeep
1981KanhaiyaaMadhav Singh
1981KaaliaShahani Seth/Jaswant
1981Katilon Ke KaatilBlack Cobra
1981Khoon Ka Rishta
1981Ladies TailorNawab Amjad Khan
1981LaawarisRanvir Singh
1981Love StoryHavaldar Sher Singh
1981Maan Gaye UstadMunna/Shera
1981NaseebDamu (Damodar)
1981Plot No. 5
1981Professor PyarelalRonnie/Ranjit Singh/Gomes
1981RockyRobert D'Souza
1981ShamaDargah devotee
1981Waqt Ki DeewarThakur Ranvir Dayal Singh
1981YaaranaBishan
1981Zamane Ko Dikhana HaiSharif Khan/Sharafat Ali/Karamat Ali/
Salamat Ali/Wajahat Ali
1982Satte Pe SattaRanjit Singh
1982BaghawatMaharaj Durjan Singh/
Maharaj Vikram Singh
1982DaulatJoseph D'Souza/Tripathi
1982Desh PremeeThakur Pratap Singh
1982Dharam KantaChandan Singh/Jwala Singh
1982Insaan
1982SamraatRanbir
1982Teesri AankhJabbar Singh
1982Taqdeer Ka Badshah
1982Teri Maang Sitaron Se Bhar DoonMohammed 'Sultan Bhai'/
Sultan Singh Rathod
1983Achha BuraMohammad Sher Khan/
Kamalrup Chaurasiya 'Shera'
1983Bade Dil WalaBhagwat Singh (B.K.)/
Dr. Joshi
1983Chor PoliceBarkhi Khan
1983HimmatwalaSher Singh Bandookwala
1983Hum Se Hai ZamanaIqbal/Thakur's son
1983Humse Na Jeeta KoiBheema Singh
1983Jaani DostHari/Nooruddin/Harry
1983MahaanVikram Singh
1983NastikTiger
1984Bindiya ChamkegiInspector Vijay A. Kumar
1984Dhokebaaz
1984Kaamyaab
1984Maati Maange KhoonThakur Balram Singh
1984Mohan Joshi Hazir Ho!Kundan Kapadia
1984Pet Pyaar Aur Paap
1984UtsavVatsyayan
1985Ameer Aadmi Gharib AadmiAkram
1985Ee Lokam Ivide Kure ManushyarAbbasMalayalam film
1985Ek Daku Saher MeinSurjan Singh
1985Ek Se Bhale DoBalram/Bhima
1985Maa KasamChakradhari
1985Mera SaathiRam Kumar's play character
1985MohabbatGamma Pehalwan
1985Patal BhairaviVishvanath Chanchal
1986Andheri Raat Mein Diya Tere Haath MeinSultan
1986Chameli Ki ShaadiAdvocate Harish
1986JeevaSardar
1986Love and GodKais' family servant
1986Mohabbat Ki KasamBaseera Singh
1986Nasihat
1986Pahunchey Huwe Log
1986Peechha KarroBrigadier
1986SimhasanamTelugu film
1986SinghasanKupateshwarSimhasanam in Hindi
1986VikramTamil film
1986ZindaganiBhola
1987Ahsaan
1987Insaaniyat Ke DushmanPratap Singh
1987Jaago Hua Savera
1987Maashuka
1987Sitapur Ki GeetaThakur Pratap Singh
1988Bees Saal BaadBhavani Baba
1988Do Waqt Ki RotiTantia Bheel/Purshottam
1988Inteqam
1988KabrastanNepolean D'Costa
1988KanwarlalJohn Jani Janardhan
1988MaalamaalSuleiman Dada
1988Paanch FauladiDelaware Khan, Fauladi #5
1988QatilBadshah Akram Khan
1988The Perfect MurderLala Heera Lal
1989DostSher Singh
1989Khuli KhidkiDr. A.K. Jayant
1989Meri ZabaanInspector Malpani/
Arjun Vaswani
1989NaqabNawab Dada Sarkar
1989SantoshQaidi No. 333
1990Lekin...Shafi Ahmed Sidiqqui
1990Maha-SangramBada Ghoda
1990Pati Patni Aur TawaifSulaiman Dildar
1991LoveGuruji
1991Izzat
1991Ramgarh Ke SholayGabbar Singh
1991Yaara Dildara
1992Aasmaan Se GiraAlien ruler
1992Dil Hi To HaiMaharaj Vikram Garg
1992Ele, My FriendOmar
1992Saali Adhi Ghar Waali
1992Waqt Ka Badshah
1992VirodhiJudge
1993Bechainas Late Amjad Khan
1993In CustodyBabu's MusicianEnglish Film
1993RudaaliThakur Ram Avtar, Lakhsman's father
1993Bannada GejjeKannada film starring Ravichandran
1993Prema YudhamTelugu film starring Nagarjuna Akkineni,
remake of Bannada Gejje
1994Do FantooshBajrangas Late Amjad Khan
1995Anokhi Chaal
1996AatankAlphonso
1996Hukumnama
1996Sautela BhaiThakur Narayandas

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