Bollywood received the first sad news of the new year, when legendary actor Om Puri passed away today, due to heart failure. He was 66. Born on 18th October 1950 in Ambala to a Punjabi family, Om Puri made his debut in films in 1972. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has tweeted condolence message on his death, recalling his long acting career in theatre and films.
Om Puri
Om Puri who started acting at the FTII, Pune later attended National School of Drama, along with Naseeruddin Shah, who was his batch mate. Some of his best performances were in films like ‘Ardha satya’,’ Mirch Masala’,’’Aakrosh’,’Arohan’,’ Chachi 420’, ‘Gupt’, ‘Pyar Toh Hona Hi Tha’. His last film was ‘Mirzya’. Om Puri was conferred with Padma Shri and has won many popular awards besides receiving Filmfare Lifetime Achievement award.
Some of his memorable dialogues were, – “Mazhab insaanon ke liye banta hai, mazhab ke liye insaan nahi bante,” – “Religion has been made for humans and not vice versa.” From the film ‘OMG’ and “Main aise loktantra mein vishvas nahi karta, joh Gareebon ki izzat karna nahi jaanta” from the film ‘Chakravyuh’. Om Puri shall always be remembered for his variety of roles in about 130 films. May his soul rest in peace.