Actor AK Hangal, who worked across several decades in Hindi cinema, became a household name through his memorable supporting roles in landmark films such as Sholay and Deewaar. Hangal was born in undivided India, jailed in Karachi for his communist views, and ‘banned’ by the Shiv Sena for associating with Pakistani nationals. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan by President APJ Abdul Kalam. Towards the end of his life, he , with several of his past colleagues stepping up to lend support. But his funeral was unattended by many of the major stars that he’d worked with over the years. Hangal died in 2012 at the age of 98; this is his story.

In a 1997 interview with Rediff, Hangal looked back on his youth.  He said, “After the Partition, I stayed back in Pakistan but I was arrested because of communist ideologies. I spent two years in jail. I was beaten regularly because I would resist everything from bad food to bad civic facilities. I was asked to leave Pakistan and go to India. But how could I leave the place and culture where I was born? One day, Muslim seniors from my party told me to go to India and start party work there, as I was the only Hindu among them. I was given 12 hours to leave Pakistan.”