Writer-actor Shiv Kumar Subramaniam who enacted a diverse range of roles dies
WRITER-ACTOR Shiv Kumar Subramaniam, known for his superb portrayal of a diverse range of supporting characters in Hindi cinema for over three decades, passed away on Sunday night. Described as “a gentle soul” many of his industry colleagues and acquaintances, Subramaniam is survived his wife, actor Divya Jagdale. He was 62.
Subramaniam, whose last major screen appearance was as the grandfather of Sanya Malhotra in the Netflix family drama Meenakshi Sundareshwar (2021), was cremated on Monday at Mokshdham Hindu Shamshanbhoomi in Andheri West. Many actors including Naseeruddin Shah, Nana Patekar, and Makarand Deshpande attended his funeral. In February this year, Subramaniam and Jagdale had lost their 15-year-old son Jahaan.
The news of his passing away shocked not only those who knew him personally but many who admired his work in the field of cinema, television, and theatre over the years. Filmmaker Anurag Kashyap called Subramaniam “the most generous, beautiful man” he had known. Recounting his meeting with him in 1994, Kashyap shared how the writer-actor allowed him to look at the script of Auto Narayan (1996), which was initially written Subramaniam. Later. Subramaniam asked director Shivam Nair to give Kashyap writer’s credit too. “That’s how I got my first screenwriting credit…I owe so much of what I am to Shiva Dada,” wrote the writer-director.
Ayesha Raza Mishra posted this obit on her Facebook account.
Subramaniam made his mark in the world of Hindi cinema with Parinda (1989), a moving crime drama set in Mumbai. Apart from playing Francis, the henchman of gangster Anna, he also wrote the screenplay of Parinda and worked as an assant director for it. Over the years, he essayed a host of interesting characters in several much talked about movies such as Prahaar (1994), 1942: A Love Story (1994), Droh Kaal (1995), Kaminey (2009), Teen Patti (2010), Stanley Ka Dabba (2011) and others.
In recent years, Subramaniam was seen as a football-loving elderly Appa in Tu Hai Mera Sunday (2016), the strict father of Alia Bhatt in 2 States (2014), apart from appearing as a principal in Hichki (2018) and Dr Nandi in Nail Polish (2021). The actor, who was a student of St Xavier’s College, Mumbai, was also a popular television and theatre actor. He was part of television shows such as Kismat (2011), Mukti Bandhan (2011), Pradhanmantri (2013-14) and 24 (2013). A versatile talent, Subramaniam was a co-writer of several movies such as 1942 A Love Story (1994), Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi (2005), and Teen Patti (2010). He was also the voice of Rafiki in the Hindi version of Jon Favreau-directed The Lion King (2019).
Describing his passing away as a “colossal loss to the theatre”, Pondicherry-based Adishakti Theatre recalled that Subramaniam was part of their very first play, Oedipus. He also played Guildenstern in their next production, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, a play Tom Stoppard. Calling him “a mentor, an older brother, a dear friend”, actor-writer Vivaan Shah remembered him as “a great art and a beautiful human being”. Many from the entertainment industry including Hansal Mehta, Manoj Bajpayee, Anil Kapoor, and Amol Gupte expressed their shock over his sudden demise.
