Legends

Obituary

Amrish Puri

India's great villain of popular cinema

By Lalit Mohan Joshi

The veteran Indian actor Amrish Puri, who has died suddenly aged 72, was one of the most versatile actors of popular Indian cinema. He achieved stardom playing the villain, but his stature as an actor went beyond Bollywood. He also appeared in Gandhi and Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom.

Puri made the switchover from stage to cinema quite late in life. He first tried to enter films in 1954, but failed his screen test. When he made his second attempt, he was already in his forties. His debut in Sukhdev's Reshma Aur Shera (Reshma And Shera, 1971) also proved frustrating when the director slashed Puri's role and robbed him of an opportunity to enter films in a big way. His elder brother, character actor Madan Puri, was unable to help him. As a result, Amrish returned to the stage, radio plays and jingles.

It was Shyam Benegal, a pioneer of Indian "new wave" cinema of the 1970s, who finally spotted Puri's potential. Benegal offered him the role of a feudal landlord, Anna, in Nishant (Night's End, 1975). Puri's portrayal of this outwardly restrained psychopath was highly acclaimed.

This was followed by Benegal's Manthan (The Churning, 1976), Bhumika (The Role, 1978) and Kalyug (Machine Age, 1981), in which Puri proved his mettle. His role of a doting but extremely dictatorial husband and father in Benegal's Zubeidaa (2000) was also very persuasive.

 Puri's deep voice, earthy features, imposing personality and harsh demeanour proved a boon when portraying authoritarian characters in Govind Nihalani's early classics such as Aakrosh (Wrath, 1980), Ardh Satya (Half Truth, 1983) and Party (1984). Soon, Richard Attenborough cast him in Gandhi (1982), and he also played Mola Ram, high priest of an evil cult, in Steven Spielberg's Indiana Jones And The Temple Of Doom (1984).

By the early 1980s, Puri was being chased for substantial roles. Ramesh Sippy's Shakti (Power, 1982) and Subhash Ghai's Vidhata (The Creator, 1982) and Hero (1983) established him as the new villain of popular cinema.

The high watermark in Puri's career was the comic character Mogambo in the sci-fi blockbuster Mr India (1987). His new avatar as a friendly villain was a huge hit, and Mogambo's oft-repeated catchphrase, "Mogambo khush hua" (Mogambo is happy), became all the rage among children.

Puri's portrayal of a soft-hearted father with a harsh exterior in Aditya Chopra's Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (The Brave-Hearted Will Take The Bride, 1995) was also loved by audiences. Besides Hindi and English films, Puri also played roles in regional-language cinema. Recent hits included Hul Chul (Commotion, 2004), in which he played a paranoid authoritarian father and an unforgiving enemy, and Aitraaz (Objection, 2004), in which he portrayed a lecherous boss who marries a pretty and ambitious model less than half his age. His last film, Subhash Ghai's Kisna, is awaiting release.

He is survived by his wife Urmila, son Rajeev and daughter Namrata.

· Amrish Puri, actor, born June 22 1932; died January 12 2005

Courtesy The Guardian

The piece appeared in the Guardian, London on Monday,  January 17, 2005