Mumbai, Dec 28: Celebrities including Amitabh Bachchan and filmmaker Shekhar Kapur today expressed shock at the sudden demise of veteran actor Farooq Sheikh due to heart attack.
Sheikh, 65, died in Dubai where he was for a concert. Sheikh was last seen in Bollywood movie 'Club 60'. His co-star in the film, actress Sarika said he appeared to be in good health during their last meeting and they had planned to meet up again.
"It is shocking because he looked well when we last met about 10 days back. He seemed fine. We joked and chatted. He was a brilliant actor that goes without saying but he was a great man, a true gentleman," Sarika told PTI.
"He loved food and that was the theme during the shooting. We all were planning to eat out when he returned from Dubai.He was great in 'Club 60'. It was a one-dimensional character but he played it beautifully," she added.
Click here to view Farooq Sheikh's life in pics.
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan remembered Sheikh as a "true gentleman". "God !! Farooq Sheikh passes away !!? A true gentleman, a wonderful colleague ! A quiet honesty about him. Very very sad!," Bachchan tweeted.
Shekhar Kapur regretted that he should have talked films instead of politics in his last meeting with the actor. "RIP Farooq Shaikh. The last time we met, we talked politics. I wish we has talked film and acting. It's what we love most. I would have learned," Kapur tweeted.
"RIP Farooq Sheikh. Immensely talented, extremely courteous. A thorough gentleman," actress-turned-politician Smriti Irani posted on Twitter.
Actor Boman Irani wrote: "Farooq Sheikh passes away! Shocked, numbed and saddened. Was supposed to be shooting with him today. A gentleman actor is no more!
Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt wrote, "Alvida Farooq bhai the warmth of your smile lingers in our memory!"
"Year 2013 took away many talented people, and this time the veteran actor Farooq Sheikh. RIP Mr Sheikh," Bengali movie star Prosenjit wrote.
Sheikh was equally active in the world of theatre and TV. His most famous stage play was 'Tumhari Amrita' with Shabana Azmi, which completed 20 years in 2012. The play, an unrequited love story read out through reams of letters, received great success. The play was a major hit in Dubai last year.
He also acted in a number of television serials like 'Shrikant', 'Chamatkar', 'Ji Mantriji' besides hosting popular chat show 'Jeena Issi Ka Naam Hai' in which he interviewed many Bollywood celebrities.
He was married to Rupa Jain and has two daughters. In his last interview to PTI, the actor had talked about the short life of films today and felt that the films have advanced technically, but their life span is shrinking and the writing department is not getting more attention
