TV actor Kavi Kumar Azad, who was best known for his role of Dr Hansraj Haathi in the popular sitcom Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashma, died on Monday afternoon after suffering a cardiac arrest. The actor’s last rites took place in Mumbai on Tuesday afternoon.
On Monday, Azad was unwell and was taken to Mumbai’s Wokhardt Hospital after he complained of discomfort. However, doctors announced him dead on arrival. The show’s producer, Asit Kumarr Modi, confirmed the news of the actor’s death. “We are very sad to inform loss of our senior actor Kavi Kumar Azaad. He was playing the character of Dr Hathi in Taarak Mehta Ka Oolta Chashma. We lost him to a massive cardiac arrest today morning. He was an amazing actor and a very positive person. He truly Loved the show and always came for the shoot even if he was not feeling well. He called today morning that he is not well and will not be able to come for shoot. And later we got the news that he passed away. We are all too numb to say anything,” Asit Kumarr Modi said in a statement.
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Kavi played the role of Dr Haathi on Taarak Mehta for almost eight years, having replaced actor Nirmal Soni, who played the role for a year since the show’s inception, in 2009. Apart from working on the small screen, Azad had also featured in a few films including Aamir Khan’s Mela and Funtoosh.
Here are some pictures from his funeral:
Also Read: Kavi Kumar Azad aka Dr Hansraj Hathi of ‘Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah’ passes away