Veteran actor Vinod Khanna passed away on Thursday, reportedly due to cancer. He was hospitalized in HN Reliance Foundation and Research Centre in Girgaon, Mumbai.
The original heartthrob and macho-man of Bollywood, Khanna was renowned for his athletic figure and had featured in more than 100 films.
He had also been the co-star of megastar Amitabh Bachchan in many memorable films. He was born in Peshawar on 6 October, 1946 and had migrated to Mumbai after partition.
Khanna made his debut with Mann Ka Meet in 1968 and emerged as one of the leading stars of the 1970s and 1980s. He was last seen in Shahrukh Khan-starrer 2015 film 'Dilwale' where he vowed the audiences' with his brilliant acting.
He received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999 and another one in 2007 at the Zee Cine Awards. Further, he was also an active politician and member of Parliament from Gurdaspur, Punjab.
Let's have a look at some of his memorable films
Amar Akbar Anthony
Released in the year 1977, Vinod Khanna played the role of an upright police officer who was separated from his brothers Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor and father Pran in childhood.
Directed by Manmohan Desai, the movie was filled with excellent action sequences, car chases and a perfect family reunion. Khanna held his mettle among the top notch star cast and was noted for his powerful acting.
The movie was a superhit and the three characters Amar, Akbar and Anthony became a part of folklore.
Achanak
The 1973-film Achanak starring Vinod Khanna is loosely based on the infamous 1959 KM Nanavati case.Major Ranjeet Khanna (played by Vinod Khanna) shoots his wife, Pushpa (played by Lily Chakravarty), and his best friend after he discovers that they are having an affair.
Ranjeet is sentenced to death and is fatally shot while escaping from the police. He is admitted to a hospital and his survival is hailed as a medical miracle. The question of justice and duty is presented through a veteran cost of actors including Farida Jalal, Om Shivpuri, Asrani and Iftikhar.
Zameer
Zameer was another movie where Vinod Khanna paired up with Amitabh Bachchan. Legendary actor Shammi Kapoor was also part of the movie. Khanna portrayed the role of Kapoor's sun and was kidnapped by a dacoit who was hell-bent on taking revenge on Kapoor.
Khanna later on became a dacoit as he grew up and the movie displayed his chiselled physique before the audience.
Bachchan and Khanna's fighting sequences, horse-riding, gun fights and reunion of three great stars made the movie one of the most endearing ones of the 80s.
It was rated as par with many Hollywood movies of its time due to its fantastic action scenes.
Dabangg
Matinee idol Vinod Khanna's second innings in Bollywood also witnessed him settling into the role of a father in various films.The 2010 blockbuster Dabangg and its sequel Dabangg 2 saw Khanna being united with Salman Khan.
He played the role of Prajapati Pandey, stepfather to the mercurial cop Chulbul Pandey (Salman Khan).
Khanna and Khan had an amazing chemistry in the movie and the ups and downs of their relationship hardly endeared both the characters to the audiences.
Wanted
The movie 'Wanted' saw Vinod Khanna once again portraying the role of Salman Khan's father. Khanna plays the role of a patriotic police officer who sends his own son (Khan) undercover to don the garb of a criminal and infiltrate criminal gangs of Mumbai.
Khan too is a police officer and risks his life for the sake of his country and the ideals of his father. Khanna however is killed by gangster Prakash Raj and he dies while showering praises on his son's bravery. Later on, Khan kills Raj and avenges his father.
Dilwale
Yesteryears superstar Vinod Khanna was last seen in Dilwale along with Shahrukh Khan where he portrayed the role of a mafia don who was shot dead by his rival gangster.
Khanna underwent a change of heart when his son fell for the daughter of his rival and had gone to seek peace and discuss his son's marriage.
However, his rival betrayed him and shot him dead. Khanna put up a spirited fight and won audiences' heart with his brilliant acting.
