JAN 06, (DNA) -Seasoned Indian actor Om Puri has passed away following a severe heart early Friday morning. The veteran artist was 66 years old.

Ashoke Pandit, a close associate of Puri and Indian Motion Picture Producers’ Association (IMPPA) vice president, took to Twitter to share the news, saying he’s “sad and shocked.”

According to BBC, a family member “found [him] dead” in his Mumbai residence.

Puri, who was born in Haryana in 1950, appeared in numerous projects in Bollywood, as well as Pakistani, British, and American films. He acted in East is East, popular movie from 1999, Charlie Wilson’s War (2007), and 2003 British TV series Second Generation.

The actor studied at Pune’s Film and Television Institute of India. In National School of Drama, class of 1973, he was a colleague of Naseeruddin Shah.

For his services to the English movie industry, the Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE) award was bestowed upon him in 2004.

In October last year, Puri got entangled in a controversy for his comment on the killing of 19 Indian soldiers in the September Uri attacks, as he stated that Pakistani artists are not terrorists.

Puri faced intense criticism for what he said, causing many Indians to label him “insensitive,” and leading to an FIR being filed against him.=DNA

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