In 1984, India could not have enough of the riotous TV comedy ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’. The most-talked about element of that rib-tickling show on DD, then the country’s only TV channel, was Satish Shah’s impeccable comic timing and astonishing range — over 40 different characters, ranging from an unwanted guest to a thief, each funnier than the last.

Those roles propelled Shah, who passed away on Saturday following kidney failure at a private hospital in Mumbai at age 74, to the cover of the reputable Hindi film magazine Madhuri, a space then reserved for major film stars. The June 7, 1985, issue, which also featured fellow ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’ actor Swaroop Sampat, carried the headline, ‘Aap ke chahete sitare’ (Your favourite stars). The characters were not specifically written for him, Shah recalled in a TV interview two years ago. He said they were people he might have seen in school, college and other places and subconsciously absorbed. “I give full credit to Mumbai city, a melting pot, which gave me the opportunity to see them,” he said.

Fellow actor, friend and FTII (Film and Television Institute of India), Pune, batchmate Rakesh Bedi said, “With his talent, he converted an outsider into the most interesting and eagerly-awaited performer of ‘Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi’.”

Shah brought laughter, grace and depth to Indian cinema and television with iconic performances, said FTII.

Shah’s journey began at FTII, captured in student films like ‘Bonga’, ‘Corpses’, ‘End Of The Game’, ‘Khukari’, ‘Lokayat’, ‘Masks’, ‘Shikast’, ‘Duniya Chalti Hai’, ‘Out of Focus’, ‘Sab Maya Hai’, ‘Sadama’ and ‘Tenth Floor’.

The actor, who featured in nearly 200 films and TV serials, marked his presence even in cameos. Few would have played the corpse of corrupt municipal commissioner D’Mello better than him in Kundan Shah’s political sidesplitter ‘Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro’ (1983).

“I changed my expressions as per scenes,” he once said. And who can forget his spit-showering ‘How dare you’ face-off with Shah Rukh Khan in ‘Main Hoon Na’ (2004). He featured in a clutch of Shah Rukh films, including ‘Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge’ (1995), ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’ (2003) and ‘Om Shanti Om’ (2007).

His talent for mimicry shone in Ramsay Brothers movies such as ‘Purani Haveli’ (1989), where his parodies of old hit Hindi film songs drew guffaws. He also played two minor negative characters in ‘Albert Pinto Ko Gussa Kyon Aata Hai’ (1980) and ‘Umrao Jaan’ (1981). But TV gave him roles of length and heft. In ‘Sarabhai vs Sarabhai’ (2004), Shah made the part of Indravadan Sarabhai, the irreverent patriarch of a well-heeled Gujarati family in swank south Mumbai, his own.

Shah faced a curious problem when starting out. At a time when actors were neatly slotted as hero, villain and comedian, he could not find himself fitting into any. “I was too tall and well-built for comedies, too soft a face to become a villain and not conventionally good-looking for a hero,” he once said on TV. But the versatile actor, who grew up in south Mumbai playing cricket with neighbourhood kids such as Sunil Gavaskar and Sudhir Naik, did well nonetheless.

Bedi recalled that Shah was as funny off screen as on it. And that his sense of humour never left him. “Some of us went to see him when he had open-heart surgery a few months ago. We were with him for two hours. He laughed and joked, making sure that he was the centre of attention,” he said.

CM Devendra Fadnavis paid tributes to Shah, describing him as a versatile artist who left an indelible mark on Indian cinema and theatre. The CM said Shah, who passed away at 74, will be remembered for the effortless charm and authenticity he brought to every role he portrayed. “Through his natural and graceful performances, he carved a permanent place in the hearts of audiences,” Fadnavis said.

He said Shah, who had also acted in films by the late Dada Kondke, contributed to enriching Marathi cinema. “His demise has caused a great loss to the world of art. A guiding link that connected generations of artists has been severed,” the CM said.

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