Veteran actor Govardhan Asrani, fondly known as Asrani, died on Monday at the age of 84 after a prolonged illness.
He had been hospitalised for five days due to age-related ailments.
Gold Rate
18 Oct 2025
The veteran comedian, who rose to fame with Mere Apne in the early 1970s, had been battling age-related ailments. Just hours before his death, he had shared Diwali greetings with his fans on social media.
His last rites were held at Santacruz Crematorium in Mumbai, with family members in attendance. News agency ANI shared images from the ceremony on social media.
Asrani cemented his place in the hearts of Indian audiences with his portrayal of the eccentric “Jailor”, modelled after Charlie Chaplin in The Great Dictator, in Sholay, the 1975 classic that turned 50 this year. Though his screen time was brief, the performance became legendary, especially his line, “Hum Angrezon ke zamaane ke jailer hain”.
Earlier in August, when Sholay marked its golden jubilee, Asrani had said that there wasn’t a single event or function where he wasn’t asked to repeat his famous jailer dialogues. “It’s all because of Sippy Saab’s direction and Salim-Javed’s writing,” he had said.
Asrani became a constant presence in Hindi cinema, especially through the 1970s and 1980s, when his comic timing made him a favourite of directors like Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Basu Chatterjee, BR Chopra and KR Rao. He seamlessly transitioned into the next generation of comedies, working with filmmakers such as David Dhawan and Priyadarshan in the 2000s, appearing in hits like Hera Pheri, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar and Gharwali Baharwali.
