Roopesh Kumar


Roopesh Kumar was a character actor in Bollywood films, especially known for his role as a villain in over 100 Hindi films from 1965 to 1995. He is widely remembered for his comic as well as negative roles in the films like Seeta Aur Geeta and The Great Gambler. He was the cousin of actress Mumtaz.

Personal life

Roopesh Kumar was born in Mumbai as Abbas Farashahi on 16 January 1946. He was the eldest child of Ali Asgar Farashahi and Mariam. He was a student of Dastur School in Pune. From his early childhood he was interested in acting. His family were in the restaurant and bakery business in Pune but he chose to be an actor. Kumar was fondly known as Dadash. He was very close to his cousin actresses Mumtaz and Malika. His oldest daughter is married to Dilip Kumar's nephew Zahid Khan and they have two children.
On 29 January 1995, Kumar suffered a heart attack while attending an awards ceremony with Sunil Dutt and Rajendra Kumar and was rushed to hospital. He died in the ambulance on the way to the hospital at the age of 49.

Career

He started his career with Tarzan and King Kong in 1965 and went on to play supporting roles of mostly villains throughout the 1970s and 1980s. His most well known films include Andaz, Seeta Aur Geeta, Chacha Bhatija, The Great Gambler, Jaani Dushman, Hum Paanch, Bade Dilwala and Guru. He also produced and directed two films, Hai Meri Jaan and Meri Aan. His last film release was Paappi Devataa in 1995, the same year of his death.

Filmography

Rustom E Hind Main Wohi Hoon as Rajan