'I'm in no hurry to die,' Satish Shah had once said expressing that he took a sabbatical from acting to rejuvinate himself

Veteran actor Satish Shah, best remembered for Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro and Sarabhai vs Sarabhai, passed away on Saturday at the age of 74. Just two years ago, in an interview with CNN-News18, the beloved actor had spoken candidly about ageing and embracing life at his own pace.

After decades of entertaining audiences through films and television, he had stepped away from the spotlight, choosing to take a long break from acting.“I’ve stopped performing in public now, I mean in movies and otherwise,” Satish had said in the 2023 interview. “I have taken, you could say, a sabbatical, and it has been rather long. Pehle se meri fitrat main raha hai, main koi cheez enjoy karta hoon tabhi karta hoon.

I stopped enjoying, I guess, for a while, so I thought maybe I’ll rejuvenate myself and then start all over again. I’m in no hurry to die.”In the same conversation, he fondly remembered his late friend and co-star Farooq Shaikh, with whom he shared the screen in Club 60. “I miss him a lot even today. We’ve been together from 1970–71, and then suddenly he left us,” Shah recalled. Reflecting on their theatre days, he added, “This guy couldn’t control his laughter, even on stage… We have some wonderful memories together.”

Over more than four decades in showbiz, Satish Shah became one of India’s most loved comic actors. A graduate of St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai, and an alumnus of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, he made his debut with Arvind Desai Ki Ajeeb Dastaan in 1978. He went on to act in over 250 films, leaving behind an extraordinary legacy.His role in Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983) turned him into a cult favorite, and he continued to shine in hits like Shakti, Hum Saath Saath Hain, Main Hoon Na, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Fanaa, and Om Shanti Om.

On television, his portrayal of Indravadan Sarabhai in Sarabhai vs Sarabhai remains one of the most iconic comic performances ever seen on Indian TV.Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit confirmed the news of his passing on Instagram, revealing that Satish Shah died due to kidney failure. His condition reportedly worsened at home, after which he was rushed to Hinduja Hospital, where he breathed his last. Calling it an “immense loss to the film and television industry,” Pandit said that Shah’s final rites will be held tomorrow.