Actor Amrish Puri passes away

Actor Amrish Puri passes away

Wednesday, January 12, 2005 (Mumbai):

Actor Amrish Puri passed away in Mumbai this morning after suffering a brain hemorrhage.

He was 72-years-old.

Puri suffered a blood clot in the brain and slipped into coma, the family sources said. He had undergone a surgery last week.

The actor is survived by wife, a son and a daughter.

Puri is most famous for his role as Mogambo in the film Mr India.

The actor, who started his film career at a relatively late age, would always be remembered for his roles in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Vidhata, Hero and Reshma aur Shera.

Worldwide acclaim

But the movie that won him worldwide acclaim was Steven Spielberg's Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

The picture of the high priest with his horned headgear, surrounded by skulls, is imprinted in many minds.

Interestingly, Puri almost didn't do the presequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark because the film's plot, he felt after reading the script, was no different from that of any regular Hindi movie and didn't offer him any challenge.

It was Sir Richard Attenborough who convinced him to do the film, pointing out that it was Spielberg's technique that made his films special.

Puri also played a small role in Attenborough's critically acclaimed film Gandhi. (With PTI inputs)