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Bollywood mourns Mehmood
26th July 2004 10.32 IST
By ApunKaChoice Bureau

The Mumbai film industry is mourning the death of one of its star comedians, Mehmood.

Leading cinema personalities paid rich tributes, describing him as an accomplished actor who rose to greatness from a humble beginning.

Former superstar Shammi Kapoor said Mehmood was the "best comedian we had at that time. He was a very, very versatile actor."

Describing Mehmood as a `fine man' and a long time friend, Kapoor remembered their association in the film `Dil Tera Deewana', which he said was the comedian's best performance.

Apart from that, Mehmood's performance in `Padoson' and `Kunwara Baap' will also be remembered, Kapoor said.

Noted actor of yesteryear and Kapoor's brother Shashi Kapoor said although he had not worked much with Mehmood, his first memories of him were when, as a child artist, he worked with Tabassum in the film `Sangram' of Bombay Talkies, in which Mehmood also played a small role.

"We met for the first time during the film when I was hardly 12 years old. Later we worked together in "Biradari."

Mega superstar Amitabh Bachchan said Mehmood was the first comedian around whom scripts of films were written.

Describing Mehmood as the "illustrious son of an illustrious father, Mukhtar Ali, who was an accomplished actor and a dancer, Bachchan said the comedian rose from a very humble beginning to become a "legendary actor."

Recalling that he had worked with Mehmood for the first time in "Saat Hindustani", Bachchan said, "we became very close friends. I almost became a close member of that family and for almost two years I lived with Mehmood bhai at his house.

Another veteran actor, Sunil Dutt , with whom Mehmood worked in the super-hit 'Padosan,' said "very few people could play the role of a comedian so beautifully."

Terming Mehmood's death as a "big loss" to the film industry, actress Asha Parekh said the late comedian had a "lively sense of humour."

Melody queen Lata Mangeshkar said Mehmood was a "great actor, singer and dancer whose death will leave a big vacuum in the film industry." "He always addressed me as Didi and I always loved him as a brother and we shared an excellent rapport", she said.