Nostalgic Nuggets: 'Mogambo Khush Hua' he said and so did the audience

As far as pure villainy went, Amrish Puri (1932-2005) was the last of the weapons in the armoury of commercial Hindi cinema. A late bloomer of sorts, as he began his filmi career only as he was close to 40 years, he had two brothers – one of them the more famous Madan Puri- who were already in the cine industry.

Yet, he was in a great and exalted position in the industry, with his peak period of the 1980s and 1990s as he touched a record 400 films between 1970 and 2005. His background in theatre, having worked with greats like Girish Karnad and Satyadev Dubey, a deep, base voice and effective use of his powerful eyes made his performances more life-like and chilling. In 1987 the film 'Mr India' got released in which he played a manic bad guy whose booming response 'Mogambo Khush Hua' made his character an instant hit. He was seen in southern language movies and Marathi too essaying villainous roles.

He did some international films too like 'Gandhi' (1982) and 'Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom' after being launched as a main villain in ' Hum Paanch' in 1980. Today is Amrish Puri's 88th birth anniversary.