Anupam Kher said that he, not Amrish Puri, was the first choice to play the role of the hugely popular villain Mogambo in Shekhar Kapur’s 1987 directorial Mr India. Remembering Amrish Puri on his 87th birth anniversary on Saturday, Kher said that he was a remarkable actor. “Amrish Puriji was a really good friend of mine. It feels sad to talk about your friends who are no more”, the actor said in a statement.
Speaking about being offered Mogambo’s role, Anupam Kher said, “In Mr. India, Mogambo’s role was offered to me before Amrish Puri. However, after one or two months, the filmmakers replaced me”.
“When you are dropped from a film then generally an actor feels bad, but when I watched Mr. India and saw Amrishji’s work as Mogambo then, I thought that makers of the film took the right decision by casting him in their film,” said Anupam Kher, who was promoting his film One Day: Justice Delivered on Saturday.
In honour of legendary actor’s birth anniversary on 22 June, Google celebrates the legacy of Amrish Puri - Bollywood’s Mogambo. Born in 1932, the actor would have turned 87 years old today. A befitting illustration of Amrish Puri, Google Doodle is Google’s way of celebrating landmark moments and people from across the globe. For someone like Amrish Puri to be recognised is indeed an honour.
Amrish Puri might best be known for his role in the 1987 superhero film Mr. India,which starred Anil Kapoor and Sridevi, but he actually has a long list of promising filmography to his name. In Dil Wale Dulhaniya Le Jayegnge he plays the role of a possessive father, in Gadar: Ek Prem Katha he represents the India-Pakistan divide, and in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom he received the much-deserved international fame.
(Inputs: IANS)
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