 "Viju Khote passes away: Rishi Kapoor, Madhuri Dixit, Ajay Devgn, Boman Irani pay tribute to legendary actor")
Legendary screenwriter Salim Khan, actors Rishi Kapoor and Satish Shah are some of the renowned Bollywood figures to pay tribute to veteran actor Viju Khote , who passed away Monday at the age of 77. Khote was most famous for playing the loyal dacoit, Kalia in Sholay and dim goon Robert in Andaz Apna Apna. Sholay writers, Khan and Javed Akhtar, who gave Khote his career-defining dialogue “Sardar, maine aapka namak khaya hai”, remembered the actor as a “lovely person”. “It is very sad to hear about his death. We all have to face this some day. It feels great that the dialogue is still remembered,” Khan told Press Trust of India. Kapoor, who co-starred with Khote in films like Karz, remembered his “dear friend”.
RIP. Viju Khote. Dear friend over the years. Though much elder,we used to bike together along with sister Shobha Khote ji,when I was young. Passionate and well informed about American films. We will miss you” Viju kutte aahe? pic.twitter.com/6e6KXaepFI
— Rishi Kapoor (@chintskap) September 30, 2019
Filmmaker Zoya Akhtar, daughter of Javed Akhtar, said Khote’s face is etched in the minds of cinema goers. “He has been around, I’ve seen him in films since I was a child. He has been a part of Sholay, he is a face that has been on everyone’s consciousness, whoever watches Indian cinema. We hope he rests in peace,” she told reporters on the sidelines of Jio MAMI 21st Mumbai Film Festival press conference. Cine and TV Artists Association (CINTAA) also condoled the demise of Khote. “Let us pray for his soul, and the family to have the strength to overcome the tragic loss.” CINTAA said in a statement.
#CINTAA expresses it's deepest condolence on the demise of Shri Viju Khote (Member Since : 1970)@sushant_says @DJariwalla @deepakqazir @amitbehl1 @SuneelSinha @ayubnasirkhan @sanjaymbhatia @NupurAlankar @rakufired @RajRomit @JhankalRavi @bhavanabalsaver pic.twitter.com/FjgKGoeTJ6
— CINTAA_Official (@CintaaOfficial) September 30, 2019
Satish Shah, Suniel Shetty, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Abhishek Bachchan among others took to social media to remember Khote.
Actors like Viju Khote were institutions by themselves. Their large body of work will always be remembered. I’m fortunate to have worked with him on quite a few films. RIP Sir🙏 My heartfelt condolences to the family.
— Ajay Devgn (@ajaydevgn) September 30, 2019
Will miss you Viju ji... Rest in peace 🙏#vijukhote #RIPVijukhote pic.twitter.com/wgALPTmNsa
— Suniel Shetty (@SunielVShetty) September 30, 2019
Darling colleague Viju Khote is no more. Hilarious on stage, iconic on screen and a darling of a human being in real life. Such a loving and humble soul. Will miss you Bawa. pic.twitter.com/IJdkXACr8S
— Boman Irani (@bomanirani) September 30, 2019
Sad to hear about the demise of #VijuKhote Ji. May his soul rest in peace.
— Madhuri Dixit Nene (@MadhuriDixit) September 30, 2019
#VijuKhote ji, rest in love! You had so much of it to give. My condolences to his family.
— Abhishek 𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐡𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧 (@juniorbachchan) September 30, 2019
A dear friend and a veteran actor Viju Khoté passed on today. May you rest in eternal peace. 🙏🙏🙏
— satish shah🇮🇳 (@sats45) September 30, 2019
Tributes to #VijuKhote ji. In him we have lost an entertainer par excellence.
— Raj Babbar (@RajBabbar23) September 30, 2019
Kaalia from Sholay may be his most memorable act but those in films like Ghatak, Andaz Apna Apna & others were equally brilliant. RIP Viju Saheb. You shall always be remembered. pic.twitter.com/7ngUX9T2IV
He charmed us in so many varied parts .. most well loved was, of course #Kaalia from #sholay .. RIP #VijuKhote ji
— Tisca Chopra (@tiscatime) September 30, 2019
The actor died in his sleep at his residence due to multiple organ failure. “He passed away today at 6.55 am peacefully in his sleep at the residence. He has been unwell since quite sometime. He had multiple organ failure,” actor Bhavana Balsavar, his niece, told Press Trust of India. Khote starred in around 300 films in his over five decade-long career in both Hindi and Marathi cinema, such as National Award-winning Marathi film Ventilator(2016), Garam Masala, Pukar, Mela, China Gate, Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, among others. (With inputs from Press Trust of India)
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