Legendary Bollywood Actor Dev Anand Dies of Cardiac Arrest

One of the few remaining superstars of Indian cinema, Dev Anand, died in London, at the age of 88, following a cardiac arrest on Saturday night.

According to Anand's family, he had not been keeping well for quite a few days now and had gone to London for medical checks.

Fellow Bollywood legend, Amitabh Bachchan, tweeted: Just reading news about Dev Saheb.. praying it is not true... He was such a positive person.. never associated death with him..

Dev Anand was a great artiste who entertained generations of cinema lovers over five decades. He was an embodiment of a lifelong passion for acting and film making. I join millions of his fans in mourning his death, said Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh.

An evergreen romantic, Anand made his acting debut in 1946, in Hum Ek Hain and by the time Ziddi was released next year, he was a superstar; he never looked back since.

A succession of hits followed his first, including Paying Guest, Baazi, Jewel Thief, CID, Johnny Mera Naam, Amir Garib, Warrant, Hare Rama, Hare Krishna and Des Pardes.

In 2001, the Government of India honored him with the prestigious Padma Bhushan and in 2002 he was awarded the Dada Saheb Phalke Award, for his outstanding contributions to Indian cinema.

Dev Anand was the second of three brothers born to Pishori Lal Anand. His brothers, Chetan Anand and Vijay Anand, were also active in Hindi cinema.