Mushtaq Merchant, the veteran Hindi film actor, writer, and comedian, died on Monday at the age of 67, as per ABP News. The actor died at the Holy Family Hospital in Mumbai.
Hanif Zaveri, a close friend of Merchant, told ABP News, “The cause of Mushtaq’s death was his high blood pressure and diabetes. He was suffering from diabetes for the last 10-12 years. Due to deteriorating health, he was admitted to the hospital in the morning. He passed away a few hours later.”
In a career spanning more than two decades, Merchant starred in over 80 films. Some of his well-known movies include Seeta Aur Geeta, Jawani Diwani, Sagar, Fifty Fifty, Naseeb Wala, Pyaar Hua Chori Chori, and Balwan.
Interestingly, he had also starred in the 1975 hit film Sholay, which featured actors Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra in the lead. However, his scenes were chopped in the final edit. Merchant had played a train driver, whose bike is stolen by Jai (Amitabh Bachchan) and Veeru (Dharmendra) in the song Yeh Dosti.
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Merchant quit cinema in the early 2000s and converted to Sufism. He subsequently devoted himself solely to religious pursuits. “About 16-17 years ago, he was disillusioned with the world of acting and his inclination towards the Sufi Dargah of Ajmer had increased a lot. In such a situation, he completely engaged himself in mahajbi activities and used to travel from Ajmer to Mumbai,” Zaveri told ABP News.
The late actor was residing in Bandra, Mumbai at the time of his death. His brother Ishtiaq Merchant told the publication that the actor was laid to rest on the same night at the Bada Qabrastan in Marine Lines, Mumbai.
Merchant is survived by his wife and two children.