Saeed Jaffrey passed away after suffering from a brain hemorrhage at 86. He starred in more than 150 films – including Richard Attenborough’s Oscar-winning “Gandhi” and John Huston’s “The Man Who Would Be King”, he was a prominent figure in British and Indian culture.
Jaffrey made almost 200 screen appearances, in a career that spanned for more than half a century, working with directors that included John Huston, James Ivory, David Lean, Richard Attenborough and Stephen Frears.
Among his much admired Bollywood performances include Shekhar Kapur’s debut “Masoom”, Raj Kapoor’s “Ram Teri Ganga Maili”, Sai Paranjpye’s “Chashme Buddoor” and Indra Kumar’s “Dil”.
Jaffrey was in demand on British television and his appearances on several hit shows included that on “The Jewel in the Crown”, “Gangsters”, “Coronation Street”, “Little Napoleons” and “Tandoori Nights”.
Before he won a Fulbright scholarship to study in the U.S., he was studying at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London.
In New Delhi, he formed his own theater group called Unity Theater and performed on stage plays by English-language masters including William Shakespeare and Tennessee Williams.
His contributions to drama, earned him the British Civilian medal of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), the first Indian to be given the award. He was also the first Asian to receive the British and Canadian Academy Awards nominations.
In 1951 to 1956, he served as the Radio Director for All India Radio while in 1958 to 1960, he was the Director of Publicity and Advertising at the Government of India Tourist Office.
His performances in “Heena”, “Ram Teri Ganga Maili” and Satyajit Ray’s “Shatranj Ke Khiladi”, earned him the honor of Filmfare Awards.
He was married twice, to Madhur Jaffrey in 1958 to 1966 and to Jennifer Jaffrey in 1980 to 2015. He had three daughters, one of which is actress Sakina Jaffrey from “House of Cards''. Madhur Jaffrey his first wife is also an actress and a celebrity cook, they divorced in 1965.
