Viju Khote funeral: Sister Shuba Khote, friends and family bid actor final farewell. See pics
Viju Khote funeral: Friends and family members of the actor arrived to pay their final respects to the actor on Monday.
Veteran Hindi and Marathi actor Viju Khote, who played Kalia to Amjad Khan’s notorious Gabbar Singh in cult classic Sholay, died on Monday. He was 77.
His friends and family members attended his funeral at Marine Lines, Mumbai on Monday afternoon. His actor sister Shubha Khote and her actor daughter Bhavana Balsavar attended the funeral. Actor Arshad Warsi was also seen as he arrived to pay final tributes to the actor.
The actor died in his sleep at his residence due to multiple organ failure. “He passed away today at 6.55 am peacefully in his sleep at the residence. He has been unwell for quite some time. He had multiple organ failure,” actor Bhavana Balsavar, his niece, told PTI. Viju Khote came from a family of artistes. He was the nephew of actor Durga Khote from his father, Nandu Khote’s side. Durga Khote played Rani Jodhabhai in K Asif’s Mughal-e-Azam.
Starting out in films in the mid-60s, Viju Khote gained prominence with Ramesh Sippy’s Sholay in 1975 where he played Kalia and got one of the most memorable film dialogues as he reminded Gabbar Singh of his loyalty. Viju Khote got his next unforgettable role in Rajkumar Santoshi’s 1994 sleeper-hit, comedy Andaz Apna Apna.
As the affable Robert, the actor got a catchphrase that has left a strong pop-culture footprint: “Galti se mistake hogaya.”He excelled in character roles through the years.
Viju Khote starred in around 300 films in his over five decade-long career in both Hindi and Marathi cinema, such as National Award-winning Marathi film Ventilator (2016), Garam Masala, Pukar, Mela, China Gate and Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, among others.
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