Veteran film actor Junior Mehmood, who was known for his performances in Caravan, Haathi Mere Saathi and Mera Naam Joker, died on Friday following a battle with cancer. "My father passed away at 2.00 am following his battle with stomach cancer. He was in a critical condition since last 17 days. He had lost 35-40 kg in a month," Hasnain Sayyed, Junior Mehmood's younger son, told news agency PTI. Sachin Pilgaonkar paid tribute to his childhood friend in an Instagram post. He shared a throwback picture of himself with Jr Mehmood on social media and he wrote, "My childhood friend and co-actor Jr Mehmood sadly passed away. I have so many beautiful memories with him that I will always cherish. Om shanti."
Junior Mehmood and Sachin Pilgaonkar worked together as child artists in several projects such as Bachpan, Brahmachari and Geet Gaata Chal. Read Sachin Pilgaonkar's tribute for Junior Mehmood here:
Filmmaker Sanjay Gupta paid tribute to Jr Mehmood on X (earlier known as Twitter) and he wrote, "You were an integral part of my childhood which was all about the movies. Rest In Peace Jr Mehmood. Many thanks for the years of entertainment."
Cine And TV Artistes' Association (CINTAA) also paid tribute to the late actor. "CINTAA expresses its condolences on the demise of Junior Mehmood (Member since 1966)," read the post.
In a career spanning over four decades, Junior Mehmood featured in over 260 films across languages. His film credits include Brahmachari, Kati Patang, Hare Raama Hare Krishna, Geet Gaata Chal, Imaandaar, Baap Numbri Beta Dus Numbri, Aaj Ka Arjun, Gurudev, Chhote Sarkar and Judaai among many others. He also appeared in TV shows such as Pyaar Ka Dard Hai Meetha Meetha Pyaara Pyaara and Ek Rishta Saajhedari Ka.
Junior Mehmood is survived by two sons and a wife.
(With inputs from PTI)