Kaul, who had worked in more than 300 Punjabi and Hindi films, was best known for his role as the god Indra in the popular television show Mahabharat.
Our Correspondent
Popular television and film actor Satish Kaul, who memorably played the god Indra in BR Chopra's epic television show Mahabharat, died in Ludhiana, Punjab, today of COVID-19. He was 74.
According to Kaul’s sister Satya Devi, the actor was admitted to a city hospital after developing a fever six days ago. “He died this morning of COVID-19 at the hospital," Satya Devi told the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency. "He had a fever and wasn’t keeping well. We admitted him to the hospital on Thursday and got him tested, where it turned out that he was COVID-19 positive.”
Kaul, a graduate of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), had worked in over 300 Punjabi and Hindi films. He began his career in the early 1970s, juggling between Hindi and Punjabi cinema. His notable work in Hindi includes films like Karma (1986), Ram Lakhan (1989), Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha (1998) and Aunty No. 1 (1998), besides the hugely popular TV serials Mahabharat (1988) and Vikram Aur Betaal (1985).
In an interview with PTI in May last year, Kaul had said he was struggling for medicines, groceries and basic needs during the countrywide lockdown and appealed to the film industry for help.
He fractured his hip bone in 2015 and remained bedridden for two and a half years. He later checked into an old-age home, where he stayed till 2019, before moving into a rented house in Ludhiana.
