Remembering Saeed Jaffrey, one of the most beloved actors of British-Indian cinema and television, on his 8th death anniversary (15/11/15).

Remembering Saeed Jaffrey, one of the most beloved actors of British-Indian cinema and television, on his 8th death anniversary (15/11/15).

Saeed Jaffrey, born on 8 January 1929 and passing on 15 November 2015, was a distinguished British-Indian actor with a versatile career spanning over six decades in film, radio, stage, and television. He featured in more than 150 movies across British, American, and Indian cinema. During the 1980s and 1990s, Jaffrey was renowned as Britain’s most prominent Asian actor, with key roles in the movie “My Beautiful Laundrette” (1985), and TV series like “The Jewel in the Crown” (1984), “Tandoori Nights” (1985–1987), and “Little Napoleons” (1994). He played a pivotal role in connecting filmmakers James Ivory and Ismail Merchant, and appeared in several of their Merchant Ivory Productions films, including “The Guru” (1969) and “The Deceivers” (1988).

Jaffrey made a significant impact in Indian cinema with his role in Satyajit Ray’s “Shatranj Ke Khilari” (1977), earning the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award in 1978. His performance as Lallan Miyan in “Chashme Buddoor” (1981) endeared him to Indian audiences. He also gained acclaim for his roles in Raj Kapoor’s “Ram Teri Ganga Maili” (1985) and “Henna” (1991), which brought him Filmfare nominations.

Jaffrey was the first Asian to be nominated for British and Canadian film awards. In 1995, he was honored with an OBE for his contributions to drama, a first for an Asian actor. His memoirs, “Saeed: An Actor’s Journey,” were published in 1998. Jaffrey’s life ended in London after a brain haemorrhage in 2015, and he was posthumously awarded the Padma Shri in January 2016.