Veteran filmmaker Chandra Barot, best known for directing the 1978 cult classic Don starring Amitabh Bachchan, died on Sunday. He was 86.
The news of his death was confirmed by his wife, Deepa Barot. Speaking to TOI, she said, "He had been battling pulmonary fibrosis for the past seven years."
She added that he was undergoing treatment at Guru Nanak Hospital under the care of Dr Manish Shetty and had also been admitted to Jaslok Hospital earlier.
Farhan Akhtar, who is directing the third installment of Don, paid tribute to Chandra Barot on Instagram. His post read, "Saddened to learn that the director of the OG Don is no more. RIP Chandra Barot-ji. Deepest condolences to the family."
Chandra Barot made his directorial debut with Don, a project that came to life after actor-producer Nariman Irani faced financial trouble following the failure of Zindagi Zindagi (1972).
To help Irani, Barot and his team took on the project and brought in writers Salim-Javed, whose script had been previously rejected by leading names like Dev Anand, Dharmendra and Jeetendra.
Following Don, Barot directed the Bengali films Aashrita (1989) and Pyar Bhara Dil (1991). However, several of his other projects-including Boss and Neil Ko Pakadna... Impossible, remained incomplete or unreleased.
His legacy lived on through the Don franchise, which expanded years later. In 2006, Shah Rukh Khan starred in a reimagined version of Don, dedicated to Barot's original.
That film went on to have a sequel, and now a third installment is in the works, directed by Farhan Akhtar, with Ranveer Singh and Kriti Sanon in the lead roles.
