New Delhi: Veteran actor Satinder Kumar Khosla, best known by his stage name Birbal, died on Tuesday evening due to cardiac arrest at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai. He was 84. The actor's last rites will be conducted at Mumbai’s Versova Hindu cremation ground on Wednesday.
Birbal is perhaps most remembered for the role of a prisoner with a half moustache in 1975's "Sholay", headlined by Dharmendra and Amitabh Bachchan.
Satinder Kumar Khosla’s daughter Shalini told PTI that her father was admitted to Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital for kidney-related issues last week.
"He had undergone brain surgery about a month ago. We had admitted him to the hospital three-four days ago due to kidney issues. He passed away at the hospital last evening due to cardiac arrest," Shalini told PTI.
The official X account of the Cine & TV Artistes’ Association (CINTAA) paid condolences to Satinder. The tweet readd, “CINTAA expresses its condolences on the demise of Birbal (Member since 1981).”
Satinder Kumar Khosla took the onscreen name Birbal after doing a few films. It is said that actor Manoj Kumar had suggested the name 'Birbal' to Satinder according to his personality and he agreed to it.
Birbal, who has worked in Hindi, Punjabi, Bhojpuri, and Marathi films, got his first break in the film Raja (1964), in which he was seen in just one scene of one song.
Birbal became popular for his comic timing in 1960s and 1970s films such as ‘Boond Jo Ban Gayi Moti’, ‘Upkar’, ‘Roti Kapda Aur Makaan’, ‘Kranti’, ‘Naseeb’, ‘Yaarana’, ‘Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke' and 'Anjaam'.
As a character actor, he has appeared in over 500 movies across languages like Hindi, Punjabi, Bhojpuri, and Marathi.