Amrish Puri (22 June 1932 – 12 January 2005) was an Indian actor, who was one of the most notable and important figures in Indian cinema and Theatre. He acted in more than 450 films, established himself as one of the most popular actors in Indian Cinema. Puri is remembered for playing various roles in variety of film genres, specially iconic villainous roles in

Hindi Cinema Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

, as well as International Cinema. He reigned supreme in villainous roles in the 1980s and 1990s, his dominating screen presence and distinctive deep voice made him stand out amongst the other villains of the day. Puri was active in both,

art cinema An art film (or arthouse film) is typically an independent film, aimed at a niche market rather than a mass market audience. It is "intended to be a serious, artistic work, often experimental and not designed for mass appeal", "made primarily f ...

such as in some of

Shyam Benegal Shyam Benegal (born 14 December 1934) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and documentary filmmaker. Often regarded as the pioneer of parallel cinema, he is widely considered as one of the greatest filmmakers post 1970s. He has received ...

and

Govind Nihalani Govind Nihalani (born 19 December 1940) is an Indian film director, cinematographer, screenwriter and producer, known for his works in Hindi cinema. He has been the recipient of six National Film Awards, and five Bollywood Filmfare Awards. In 1 ...

's films and mainly in mainstream cinema. Puri won three Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Actor in eight nominations. He also holds most Filmfare Award for Best Villain nominations. While he predominantly worked in Hindi-language films, he had also appeared in

Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

, Kannada, Tamil, Malayalam and

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

language films. Puri played some of most remembered villainous roles in '' Vidhaata'' (1982), '' Shakti'' (1982) '' Hero'' (1983), '' Meri Jung'' (1985), '' Nagina'' (1986), ''

Mr. India Mr. or Mister India may refer to: Pageants * Rubaru Mister India, a national Indian beauty pageant in India that sends its winners to Mister International, Mister Global, Mister Model International and other international competitions * Mister Indi ...

'' (1987), '' Shahenshah'' (1988), '' Ram Lakhan'' (1989), '' Tridev'' (1990), '' Ghayal'' (1990), '' Saudagar'' (1991)'', Thalapathi'' (1991), ''

Tahalka ''Tahalka '' () is a 1992 Indian Hindi-language action adventure film directed by Anil Sharma, featuring an ensemble cast including Dharmendra, Naseeruddin Shah, Aditya Pancholi, Javed Jaffrey, Amrish Puri, Mukesh Khanna, Ekta Sohini, Pa ...

'' (1992), '' Damini (1993)'', '' Karan Arjun'' (1995), '' Jeet'' (1996), Koyla (1997), '' Baadshah'' (1998), '' Gadar: Ek Prem Katha'' (2001) and '' Nayak: The Real Hero'' (2001). Main antagonist '' Mogambo '' from Shekhar Kapur's

(1987) played by Puri, ''is considered as one of greatest villains of all time in Indian Cinema'',it was reported that he received a salary of ₹10 million (US$771,890.82), making him the ''highest-paid Indian villain'' actor of all time. His comic role in Chachi 420, that he acted alongside

Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan (born 7 November 1954) is an Indian actor, filmmaker, screenwriter, playback singer, television presenter and politician who works mainly in Tamil cinema and has also appeared in some Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi, Kannada and Bengali l ...

was highly appreciated. Puri was highly prolific actor, he also featured in positive supporting roles, of which he won 3 times Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Actor. Some of his notable positive roles are '' Phool Aur Kaante'' (1991), '' Gardish'' (1993), '' Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge'' (1995), '' Ghatak'' (1996), '' Diljale'' (1996) ''

Pardes Pardes may refer to: Judaism * Pardes (legend), Jewish account of a Heavenly orchard * Pardes (Jewish exegesis), a Kabbalistic theory of biblical exegesis. * ''Pardès'', the European Journal of Jewish Studies, co-founded by Shmuel Trigano and ...

'' (1997), '' Virasat'' (1997), '' China Gate'' (1998), '' Badal'' (2000), '' Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai'' (2001), '' Mujhse Shaadi Karogi'' (2004) and '' Hulchul'' (2004). To Western audiences, he is best known as '' Mola Ram'' in

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

film ''

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom ''Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom'' is a 1984 American action-adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg. It is the second installment in the ''Indiana Jones'' franchise, and a prequel to the 1981 film ''Raiders of the Lost Ark'', fea ...

'' (1984) and as ''Khan'' in

Richard Attenborough Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, (; 29 August 192324 August 2014) was an English actor, filmmaker, and entrepreneur. He was the president of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and the British Academy of Film and Televisio ...

's Gandhi (1982). His grandson, Vardhan Puri is also an actor in Indian Cinema, having written and starred in a film produced by a production house named after Puri, Amrish Puri Films.

Early life

Amrish Lal Puri was born in a Punjabi Hindu family in

Nawanshahr Nawanshahr is a municipal council in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district in the Indian state of Punjab. It was previously a town that became a district in 1995. History Nawanshahr was founded by migrants from Rahon, a city located near the S ...

, Punjab, to Lala Nihal Chand and Ved Kaur. He had four siblings, elder brothers Chaman Puri and

Madan Puri Madan Puri (30 September 1915 – 13 January 1985) was an Indian actor of Hindi and Punjabi films. His brothers were actors Chaman Puri and Amrish Puri. As a character actor mainly in negative roles (villain), he acted in about 430 films in a ca ...

(both of whom were also actors), elder sister Chandrakanta, and a younger brother, Harish Puri. He was the first cousin of the actor and singer K. L. Saigal.

Career

Puri acted in more than 450 films between 1967 and 2005, and was one of the most successful villains in Bollywood. Most of them were hits. Puri first came to Bombay in the early 1950s following the footsteps of his elder brothers – Madan Puri and Chaman Puri, who were already established actors known for playing villainous roles. He failed his first screen test, and instead found a job with the Employees' State Insurance Corporation Ministry of Labour and Employment (ESIC). At the same time, he started performing at the

Prithvi Theatre Prithvi Theatre is one of Mumbai's best known theatres. It was built by Shashi Kapoor and his wife Jennifer Kapoor in memory of Prithviraj Kapoor, Shashi's father, who had dreamt of having a "home" for his repertory theatre company, Prithvi Thea ...

in plays written by Satyadev Dubey. He eventually became well known as a stage actor and won the

Sangeet Natak Akademi Award Sangeet Natak Akademi Award (IPA: Saṅgīta Nāṭaka Akādamī Puraskāra), also known as the Akademi Puraskar, is an award given by the Sangeet Natak Akademi Sangeet Natak Akademi (The National Academy of Music, Dance and Drama in Englis ...

in 1979. This theatre recognition soon led to work in television ads and eventually to films at the relatively late age of 40. Puri went on to work in Hindi, Kannada,

, Hollywood,

, Malayalam,

and Tamil films. Though he was successful in many regional films, he is best known for his work in Bollywood cinema. Through the 1970s, Puri often worked in supporting roles, usually as the henchman of the main villain. He was noticed in the 1980 super-hit movie '' Hum Paanch'' in which he played the main villain. After that, he started getting cast as the main villain in other movies. In 1982, Puri played the main villain, Jagavar Choudhary in the Subhash Ghai super-hit film '' Vidhaata''. That year, he again played the main villain, JK in the movie '' Shakti'' co-starring Dilip Kumar and

Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; born as Amitabh Shrivastav; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor, film producer, television host, occasional playback singer and former politician known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the most succe ...

. Next, in 1983, Ghai again cast him as the main villain, Pasha in the hit movie '' Hero''. Puri regularly featured in subsequent Ghai films. Puri reigned supreme in villainous roles in the 1980s and 1990s. His dominating screen presence and baritone voice made him stand out amongst the other villains of the day. He is known to international audiences for his roles as Khan in

's '' Gandhi'' (1982) and as the main

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonist. Etymology The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, riv ...

Mola Ram in

's ''

'' (1984). He shaved his head for the role, and it created such an impression that he kept his head shaved. His bald look gave him the flexibility to experiment with different looks as a villain in subsequent movies. Puri and Spielberg shared a great rapport and Spielberg often said in interviews: "Amrish is my favorite villain. The best the world has ever produced and ever will!" In villainous roles, Puri is best remembered as "Mogambo" in ''

'', "Jagavar" in '' Vidhaata'', "Thakral" in '' Meri Jung'', "Bhujang" in '' Tridev'', "Balwant Rai" in '' Ghayal'', Barrister Chadda in '' Damini'' and "Thakur Durjan Singh" in '' Karan Arjun''. His comic role in '' Chachi 420'', that he acted alongside

was highly appreciated. From the 1990s until his death in 2005, Puri also featured in positive supporting roles in many movies. Some of his notable positive roles are '' Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge'', '' Phool Aur Kaante'', '' Gardish'', ''

'', '' Virasat'', '' Ghatak'', '' Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai'', '' China Gate''. He received the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor award for ''Meri Jung'' and ''Virasat''.

Death

Puri was suffering from myelodysplastic syndrome, a rare kind of blood cancer, and had undergone brain surgery for his condition after he was admitted to the Hinduja Hospital on 27 December 2004. His condition required frequent removal of the blood accumulated in the cerebral region of the brain and after some time he slipped into a coma shortly before his death around 7:30 a.m on 12 January 2005. His body was brought to his residence for people to pay their last respects, and his funeral was on 13 January 2005 at Shivaji Park crematorium.

Legacy

On 22 June 2019, Puri was honoured with a Google Doodle. Commemorating his 87th birthday, Google carried his picture and the accompanying text read as, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again—and you might end up like Indian film actor Amrish Puri, who overcame an early setback on the way to fulfilling his big screen dreams."

Awards

Wins

* 1968: Maharashtra State Drama * 1979:

for Theatre * 1986: Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – '' Meri Jung'' * 1991: Maharashtra State Gaurav Pur '' Ghatak'' * 1997:

Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor The Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor is chosen by a distinguished panel of judges from the Indian "Bollywood" film industry and the winners are announced in January. The first award was given to Anupam Kher. Saif Ali Khan, having won th ...

– '' Ghatak: Lethal'' * 1997: Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – ''Ghatak: Lethal'' * 1998: Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – '' Virasat'' * 1998: Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor – ''Virasat''

Nominations

* 1990: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – '' Tridev'' * 1992: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – '' Saudagar'' *1993: Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – '' Muskurahat'' * 1993: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – ''

'' *1994: Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – '' Gardish'' * 1994: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – '' Damini'' *1996: Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – ''

Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge ''Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge'' (), also known by the initialism ''DDLJ'', is a 1995 Indian Hindi-language musical romance film written and directed by Aditya Chopra in his directorial debut and produced by his father Yash Chopra. Released on ...

'' * 1996: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – '' Karan Arjun'' * 1999: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – '' Koyla'' * 2000: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – '' Baadshah'' * 2002: Filmfare Award for Best Villain – '' Gadar: Ek Prem Katha'' * 2002:

Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role The Zee Cine Award Best Actor in a Negative Role is chosen by a jury organized by Zee Entertainment Enterprises, and the winner is announced at the ceremony. It awards the actor or actress in the role of an antagonist. Kajol was the first woman ...

– ''Gadar: Ek Prem Katha''

Filmography

Bibliography

References

External links

* *
Obituary from rediff

Obituary from Times of India
{{DEFAULTSORT:Puri, Amrish 1932 births 2005 deaths Punjabi Hindus 20th-century Indian male actors 21st-century Indian male actors Filmfare Awards winners Screen Awards winners Indian male film actors Indian male stage actors Male actors in Hindi cinema Male actors in Kannada cinema Male actors in Malayalam cinema Male actors in Marathi cinema Male actors in Punjabi cinema Male actors in Tamil cinema Male actors in Telugu cinema People from Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district Punjabi people Recipients of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award