Amar Akbar Anthony writer Prayag Raj dies at 88

Veteran screenwriter Prayag Raj who was celebrated for his contributions to iconic Amitabh Bachchan starrer movies like “Amar Akbar Anthony” and "Coolie," has passed away at the age of 88 due to age-related ailments.

As per his son Aditya, the writer breathed his last on Saturday evening at his residence in Bandra, PTI reported.

"He passed away peacefully on Saturday at 4 pm at his residence in Bandra. He had multiple ailments since eight to ten years like heart disease and age-related issues," Aditya told PTI.

Raj, who penned the story for Bachchan's "Naseeb", "Suhaag" "Coolie" and "Mard", had over 100 films to his credit as a writer and a few as a lyricist.

Soon after the news broke, several celebrities from Amitabh Bachchan to Anil Kapoor took to their social media handles to pay tribute to the filmmaker.

Taking to Instagram story, Anil Kapoor, who worked with Prayag Raj in ‘Hifazat’ expressed sadness at the demise on Sunday and wrote “I'm truly saddened by the loss of the late Prayag Raj. Working with him on ‘Hifazat’ was a privilege. May his soul rest in peace.”

On the other hand, Amitabh Bachchan shared the news of Prayag Raj’s demise on his personal blog.

He wrote, “Last evening we have lost another pillar of our great Film Industry ..PrayagRaj passed away at 4 pm yesterday.”

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‘Amar Akbar Anthony’ actor Shabana Azmi on Saturday took to X and wrote, “Sorry to hear about the passing away of writer-director actor Prayag Raj. RIP.”

Prayag Raj worked with Rajesh Khanna, Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra and others. He wrote the screenplay for films including ‘Dharamveer’, ‘Ponga Pandit’, ‘Coolie’, ‘Mard’, ‘Desh Premee’, ‘Naseeb’, ‘Suhaag’, ‘Parvarish’, ‘Amar Akbar Anthony’, ‘Bhai Ho To Aisa’, ‘Hifazat’, among others.

He not only tried his hands on writing and direction but singing and composing music too.

(With inputs from agencies)