Veteran Bollywood actor Kader Khan passes away

TORONTO: Veteran Bollywood actor-writer Kader Khan passed away Monday at the age of 81 after a prolonged illness, his son Sarfaraz confirmed.

Khan was seeking treatment at a hospital in Canada for a condition called Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, a degenerative disease that causes loss of balance, difficulty in walking and dementia.

Sarfaraz further informed that the last rituals of the deceased actor will be performed in Canada.

"My dad has left us. He passed away on December 31 at 6 pm as per Canadian time due to prolonged illness. He slipped into coma in the afternoon. He was in the hospital for 16-17 weeks,” he said. 

"The last rites will be performed here in Canada only. We have our entire family here and we live here so we are doing it,” Indian media quoted him as saying.

Sarfaraz added, "We are thankful to everyone for their blessings and prayers.” 

Khan had developed breathing issues after which he was shifted to a BiPAP ventilator from a regular one.

Having made a name in the yesteryears, Khan became an eminent actor in the 1980s and 90s.

He made his debut in 1973 with Rajesh Khanna’s ‘Daag’. His acting stint comprises of over 300 films.

Khan even wrote dialogues for over 250 movies. He used to collaborate with Manmohan Desai and Prakash Mehra as a screenwriter.

His famous work with Desai include, 'Dharam Veer', 'Ganga Jamuna Saraswati', 'Coolie', 'Desh Premee', 'Suhaag', 'Parvarish' and 'Amar Akbar Anthony'. With Mehra he worked on films like 'Jwalamukhi', 'Sharaabi', 'Lawaaris', 'Muqaddar Ka Sikandar'.