Actor-Director Satish Kaushik Dies at Age 66

Actor and filmmaker Satish Kaushik passed away at the age of 66 after suffering a heart attack. Anupam Kher, a friend and colleague, said that Kaushik felt uneasy while at a friend’s home in Delhi and asked his driver to take him to the hospital, but suffered a heart attack on the way. Kher tweeted that he was shocked to hear about Kaushik’s sudden death and paid tribute to his 45-year friendship.

Kaushik was a multi-talented artist and was an alumnus of the National School of Drama and the Film and Television Institute of India. He co-wrote the dialogues for “Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro” and played the role of Ashok, the assistant to Pankaj Kapur’s corrupt contractor Tarneja in the 1983 cult classic. In “Mr India”, he played the role of Calendar, the cook at the orphanage run by Anil Kapoor’s character.

Kaushik’s comic pairing with Govinda yielded some of the biggest hits of the 90s in films such as “Swarg”, “Saajan Chale Sasural”, “Deewana Mastana”, “Pardesi Babu”, “Bade Miyan Chote Miyan”, “Aunty No 1” and “Haseena Maan Jayegi.” As a successful director, he directed films such as “Roop Ki Raani Choron Ka Raja,” “Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain,” “Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai,” “Badhaai Ho Badhaai,” and “Kaagaz.”

Kaushik’s last post on Twitter was a series of pictures from the annual Holi celebrations in Mumbai. Kangana Ranaut, who worked with Kaushik in her upcoming film “Emergency,” remembered the actor as a “kind and genuine man.”

Manoj Bajpayee said Kaushik’s death was a “great loss” for the film fraternity. Soni Razdan fondly remembered her “Mandi” co-star as a ‘jolly gentle soul.’ Kaushik was born in Haryana and raised in Delhi’s Karol Bagh. He dreamed of becoming an actor and moved to Mumbai with Rs 800 given to him by his brother-in-law. A young Kaushik worked at a textile mill during the day and took acting classes in the evening.