Gufi Paintal of Mahabharat fame passes away at 79

Gufi Paintal

Actor Gufi Paintal who is best known for playing the role of Shakuni mama in BR Chopra's TV show 'Mahabharat' (1980),passed away on Monday. He was 79. The actor was admitted to a hospital in Mumbai a couple of days ago after his health deteriorated. As per reports, Paintal had a heart failure and passed away at around 9 am on Monday morning. He died due to age related issues.

The actor's family said in a statement, "With profound grief we announce the sad demise of our father Mr Gufi Paintal (Shakuni Mama). He passed away peacefully this morning surrounded by family."

"Unfortunately, he is no more. He passed away at the hospital at around 9 am. His heart gave up. He passed away peacefully in his sleep," Hiten told PTI. Hiten had earlier told PTI that his uncle was not keeping well due to age-related health issues. "He had blood pressure and heart issues. He was keeping unwell and all this was going on for a while. Things got severe now so we got him to the hospital for observation. He has been in the hospital for seven to eight days. He was critical initially, but right now he is stable," Hiten had told PTI.

Talking to TOI, Hiten said, "Gufi uncle passed away this morning at around 9 am. It has been a tough morning for us. He was recovering well and suddenly he passed away today. He in fact woke up this morning and also spoke to us a bit and then he went to sleep. After that, he didn't wake up at all and passed away in his sleep. From what we have been told, his heart stopped functioning."

Gufi has appeared in both TV shows and films. He was seen in 'Bahadur Shah Zafar', 'Mahabharat', 'Kanoon', 'Om Namah Shivay', 'CID', 'Ssshhhh...Koi Hai', 'Dwarkadheesh Bhagwaan Shree Krishn', 'RadhaKrishn' and 'Jay Kaniya lal Ki' among other shows.