Amjhad Khan

Biography:

Amjad Khan was an Indian actor and film director who lived from 12 November 1940 until 27 July 1992. During the course of his nearly two-decade career, he contributed to over 132 films. He was Jayant, the actor’s son.

His most well-known evil parts were as Dilawar in Muqaddar Ka Sikandar (1978) and as Gabbar Singh in the 1975 blockbuster Sholay. He rose to fame primarily in Hindi films. Born on November 12, 1940, in Bombay, Bombay State, British India, Amjad Khan was the son of actor Jayant, originally from Peshawar, North-West Frontier Province, and a Sunni Muslim family of Pashtun background.

Imtiaz Khan, his younger brother, was also an actor. Amjad Khan received his education at Bandra’s St. Andrew’s High School. As a student at R. D. National College, he served as general secretary. He worked as a theater artist and gave performances in his college alongside his brother during his time in school.

Amjad Khan performed in theaters before entering the film industry. In the 1951 movie Nazneen, he played a child actor in his debut part at the age of 11. At the age of seventeen, he landed his next role in the 1957 movie Ab Dilli Dur Nahin. He made a cameo appearance and provided support to K. Asif in the late 1960s movie Love And God.

After Asif passed away in 1971, the movie remained unfinished until its 1986 release. He had a minor role in Hindustan Ki Kasam in 1973. Salim Khan, one of the film’s authors, gave him the part of dacoit Gabbar Singh in Sholay in 1975.

Amjad studied Abhishapth Chambal, a book on Chambal dacoits penned by actor Taroon Kumar Bhaduri (the father of actress Jaya Bhaduri), in order to get ready for the part. With the film, Amjad shot to fame. In particular, “Soja Nahi to Gabbar Ajayega” is a parody and spoof that has gained a lot of traction in Bollywood culture due to his mannerisms and speech.

Sholay proceeded to become a huge hit. Amjad stole the show with his unconventional and spooky line delivery, even though the film had an ensemble cast of superstars, including Dharmendra, Amitabh Bachchan, and Sanjeev Kumar, who was nominated for a Filmfare award for Best Actor that year.

People still have pleasant memories of his conversations and demeanors. Later, he portrayed Gabbar Singh in commercials for Britannia Glucose Biscuits, also referred to as Gabbar Ki Asli Pasand. This was the first time a villain was utilized to promote a well-liked product.

Following Sholay’s success, Khan went on to play supporting parts in a number of Hindi movies in the 1970s, 1980s, and early 1990s, eventually surpassing Ajit, the previous Indian actor, in terms of demand and popularity.

He frequently played the antagonist to Amitabh Bachchan’s hero. He was also portrayed in Inkaar in a frightful way. Des Pardes, Nastik, Satte Pe Satta, Chambal Ki Kasam, Ganga Ki Saugandh, Hum Kisise Kum Nahin, and Naseeb were among the places he left his mark.

Khan received praise for taking on a variety of unusual roles. Khan portrayed the defenseless and delusional king Wajid Ali Shah in the highly praised 1977 film Shatranj Ke Khiladi (directed by Satyajit Ray; based on the novel of the same name by Munshi Premchand), whose kingdom, Avadh, is being targeted by British colonialists from the British East India Company.

It’s the only film in which he did a song dubbing. He played Emperor Akbar in the 1979 movie Meera. He portrayed numerous good roles, including those of Rocky (1981) and Commander (1981), as well as those of Amitabh’s father and friend in Yaarana (1981) and Laawaris (1981).

He played the role of Kama Sutra author Vatsayana in the art film Utsav (1984). He played an underworld don in the Merchant Ivory English-language film The Perfect Murder in 1988. He was particularly good at playing funny roles in movies like Chameli Ki Shaadi (1986), Love Story (1980), and Qurbani (1980).

He played Gabbar Singh again in 1991’s Ramgarh Ke Sholay, a spoof of the classic movie that included Amitabh Bachchan and Dev Anand lookalikes. During a brief period in the 1980s, he directed and starred in two films that did not perform well at the box office: Chor Police (1983) and Ameer Aadmi Gareeb Aadmi (1985).

Amjad presided over the Actors Guild Association as its president. In the movie business, he was well-liked and would step in to mediate conflicts between performers and producers/directors. One such disagreement happened when Raj Kumar Santoshi made Meenakshi Seshadri withdraw from Damini (1993) after she turned down his proposal.

Amjad Khan resolved the issue and forced Raj Santoshi to retract his severe ruling. He wed Shaila Khan in 1972, and the following year, Shadaab Khan, their first child, was born. In addition, he had two sons, Seemaab Khan and Ahlam Khan, a daughter. 2011 saw Ahlam wed well-known theater performer Zafar Karachiwala.

Amjad Khan suffered a severe accident on the Mumbai-Goa highway on October 15, 1976, which resulted in shattered ribs and a punctured lung. He was scheduled to take part in the filming of The Great Gambler, which starred Amitabh Bachchan. He passed away on July 27, 1992, from a heart attack. 51 was his age.