Veteran Actor Mushtaq Khan, Known for Welcome and Hera Pheri, Dies at 56

Balle Balle Radio™ Entertainment Desk

Mushtaq Khan, a veteran Bollywood character actor, passed away at 56 after fighting cancer, as reported by multiple sources. Balle Balle Radio released a tribute following his passing.

According to accounts of his final days, Khan was taken to Nanavati Hospital in Mumbai following stomach pain complaints and died there that evening. Reports have varied slightly on the precise cause, with some describing liver cancer as the underlying illness and others noting a decline in his health over recent weeks; the exact date given for his death has also varied across accounts, with some placing it in mid-September and others on September 24.

Known for roles in Welcome, Hera Pheri, and Gadar, Khan had developed a long career as a comic and character actor in Hindi cinema and television. He was a familiar face in the ensemble comedies that defined a stretch of early-2000s Bollywood, typically cast in supporting parts that traded on sharp timing rather than lead billing.

Tributes have followed from across the industry and from platforms including Balle Balle Radio, reflecting the reach of a filmography built less on marquee roles than on steady, recognizable work over many years.

Studio CarryOnHarry sees this as a reminder of how much of Bollywood’s comic backbone over the past two decades rested on character actors like Khan, whose names moviegoers may not always have known even when his face was instantly familiar.

Read more People’s Choice stories on Studio CarryOnHarry. Reporting via Live News Vault.

Press Releases at Studio CarryOnHarry