Veteran Actor Ramesh Deo Passes Away Due To Heart Attack At 93

Born in Amravati in Maharashtra, Ramesh Deo made his debut in a Marathi film Paatlaachi Por in a cameo appearance in 1951.

Actor Ramesh Deo (Image: Twitter)

New Delhi: Veteran actor Ramesh Deo passed away at the age of 93 due to a heart attack on Wednesday.

Speaking to news agency PTI, the late actor’s filmmaker son Abhinay Deo said, “He passed away due to a heart attack around 8.30pm tonight at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital. He was 93.”

Born in Amravati in Maharashtra, Ramesh Deo made his debut in a Marathi film Paatlaachi Por in a cameo appearance in 1951. His first full-fledged role was in the Marathi movie Andhala Magto Ek Dola, directed by Raja Paranjape, in the year 1956.

Rest in peace and glory!

Veteran actor #RameshDeo passed away at 93. We pray for him and his family in these tough times. pic.twitter.com/LhZD0yLG5t

— Filmfare (@filmfare) February 2, 2022

The veteran actor then featured in over 250 Hindi films and nearly 200 Marathi movies in his acting career spanning 60 years. Deo is known for iconic films such as Anand and Aap Ki Kasam in Hindi cinema and his extensive work in the Marathi film industry.

After being in the Marathi film industry, he turned to Hindi cinema in the mid-60s. The actor, who would be remembered for his unassuming screen presence, aced myriad roles, from a friendly doctor to a loveable friend to a menacing villain. His trademark moustache and the smile charmed the audience throughout his film career.   

Ramesh Deo largely hit the silver screens as a character actor essaying both positive and negative roles in movies including Aarti, Anand, Aap Ki Kasam, Mere Apne, Jeevan Mrityu, Saraswatichandra, Teen Bahuraniyan, Khilona, Ghayal Once Again, Jolly LLB, among others.

The actor sailed through the film industry, cutting across several movie eras at ease, from Dilip Kumar, Rajesh Khanna to Amitabh Bachchan, and though his work slowed down in the 90s, he even went on to work with new-age stars in films such as Jolly LLB with Akshay Kumar and Sunny Deol starrer Ghayal Once Again, which marked his last big-screen appearance in the year 2016.

In filmmaker Hrishikesh Mukherjee's 1971 classic Anand, Deo played the role of Dr Prakash Kulkarni, featuring alongside his actor wife Seema Deo.

Ramesh was also a TV veteran and he featured in over 30 Marathi dramas. As an artist, he wasn't just limited to acting and ventured into the domain of film production and direction, backing TV serials and over 250 ad films.

The actor is survived by his wife a veteran actor Seema Deo and his sons Ajinkya Deo, a Marathi actor and Abhinay Deo, a film director. Abhinay is best known for his film Delhi Belly.