'Don' director Chandra Barot dies at 86

Mumbai | Veteran filmmaker Chandra Barot, best known for the 1978 Amitabh Bachchan-starrer “Don”, passed away on Sunday due to cardiac arrest at a hospital in Mumbai, his wife said.

He was 86.

Barot was battling 'Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis' (IPF-fibrosis of lungs) for the past 11 years and had been receiving treatment at the Guru Nanak Hospital, as per his family.

“Chandra passed away at the Guru Nanak Hospital this morning at 6.30 due to cardiac arrest caused by a chest infection. He had IPF, which is fibrosis of the lungs, for the past 11 years,” his wife, Deepa Barot told PTI.

Before making his directorial debut with “Don”, the filmmaker served as an assistant director to actor-director Manoj Kumar in “Purab Aur Pachhim”, “Roti Kapada Aur Makaan”, “Yaadgaar”, and “Shor”.

After “Don”, Chandra Barot directed a Bengali film “Aashrita” (1989).

The filmmaker is survived by his wife and a son.

“Don”, which gained a cult status, was turned into a franchise by filmmaker Farhan Akhtar, son of Javed Akhtar, who had written the original script of the movie along with Salim Khan.

Farhan Akhtar's Excel Entertainment bought the rights to the 1978 film and directed it in 2006, with Shah Rukh Khan playing the titular role.

He made the follow-up movie “Don 2” in 2011. The third part will see Ranveer Singh stepping into the shoes of Khan.