This charismatic Khan was reduced to Gabbar Singh, courtesy of a blinkered Bollywood

Actor, activist, scholar, thinker… Amjad Zakaria Khan was all of them and more, rolled into one cinemascope persona. His master's degrees in Philosophy and Persian literature were abundantly evident in his dialogue and diction across all his significant and fleeting screen appearances but all that this son of the legendary actor Jayant, (originally Zakaria Khan, a Pashtun from Peshawar) is remembered for is the pithy line "Kitne aadmi the?" Unlike the biscuit company that transformed his screen terror into a lucrative and timeless advertisement for posterity, the makers and takers of Bollywood trivialised his talent, leaving him with a body of work that left much of his phenomenal range untapped. What a pity!

Even for this tribute, one has little option but to start with his role in the iconic film Sholay above all else, for his selection and his preparation for the part is a film in itself. Javed Akhtar found the voice below par but his partner Salim Khan thought the exact opposite and thankfully paved the way for Amjad's hard work to bear rich fruit. His diligent study of Abhishapth Chambal, a documentary account of Chambal dacoits by Taroon Kumar Bhaduri, made Gabbar Singh immortal on celluloid. Note how he says "Yaad hai thakur kya kahe the tum" or "Kaha hai re fauji number doh" or "Ae gori, jara humko bhi dikhayi de ek dui thumka", not just the signature lines like "Ye haat humko de de thakur" or "Jo dar gaya samjho mar gaya", he nailed the enunciation, a fine blend of the UP-bred Khari Boli and Awadhi, like few did before or after him. The way he spots a fly on his wrist, lazing on the charpai, and kills it mercilessly is as impactful as how Javier Bardem shoots down a bird on the bridge in the landmark Cohen brothers' masterpiece No Country for Old Men.

For me, the fact that Amjad saab left the great director Satyajit Ray mesmerised is the biggest proof of his talent and temperament. Ray was not sure how a new-born star of 'Gabbar' credentials could play a thumri-loving, soft-hearted poet and accidental king Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of his period drama based on Munshi Premachand's poignant story, Shatranj Ke Khiladi till he heard the actor hum the heart-wrenching lament "Jab chhod chale Lucknow nagari, kaho haal Adam par kya guzari" in what was a rehearsal on request. He knew then and there that the best in business was at play.

Never mind the dearth of fruitful opportunities, Amjad saab unleashed his all-round competence in film after film - Imtihaan, Yaarana, Laawaris, Qurbani, Chameli Ki Shaadi, Maa Kasam, Dada, Love story, Rudaali, Do Fantoosh, Aatank and the like. Take a no-brainer hit like Naseeb. A scene goes like this: Don (Amrish Puri) is slated to visit India, when Damu (played by Amjad Saab) casually asks Raghu (Kadar Khan) a key question: 'Maine unko kabhi nahi dekha. Tumne dekha hai?' (I haven't seen him yet, have you?) Amjad saab's 'Tumne dekha hai?' is astoundingly natural for a film which was clearly over the top. But very few would notice the subtle magic he could spin on screen even in downright mass entertainers.

His directorial ventures Chor Police and Ameer Aadmi Ghareeb Aadmi failed at the box office but he was upbeat about making Adhura Aadmi. Sadly, it never saw the light of day. Ditto for the stage revival of his brother Imtiaz's adaptation of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Graver than his filmic tragedy was the life-threatening 1976 car accident on the Bombay–Goa highway that made him obese from the high-potency drugs, followed by a nasty fall a few years later that gave him Bell's Palsy. In 1992, a fatal heart attack cut short a life that was yet brimming with possibilities. Amjad saab was only 51.

We profusely thank the fertile soils of Bombay's St. Andrew's High School and R.D. National College where Amjad saab thrived as actor and director. They won him more awards and accolades than what the film industry conferred on him.