Mumbai: Veteran actor Vishal Anand, best known for featuring in the 1976 hit film "Chalte Chalte", passed away on Sunday following a prolonged illness, his family said in a statement on Monday. He was 82.
The actor, whose real name was Bhisham Kohli, appeared in several Hindi films in the 1970s, including "Hindustan Ki Kasam" and "Taxi Driver".
It was, however, "Chalte Chalte", also starring Simi Garewal, that earned Anand acclaim and fame. In a statement shared by Anand's nephew, actor Purab Kohli, the family said the veteran star passed away Sunday noon.
"He was not keeping in good health since the last couple of months. We would like people to remember him from the 1976 super-hit song and movie 'Chalte Chalte'.
"Our prayers are with him, may he rest in peace. We kindly request members of the press and media to respect the family's privacy during this sad time," the family said in the statement.
Anand had also produced "Chalte Chalte" and he is credited for giving veteran music composer Bappi Lahiri his big break with the Sunder Dar directorial.
The songs from the thriller, including Kishore Kumar's "Chalte Chalte Mere Ye Geet Yaad Rakhna" and "Pyar Mein Kabhi Kabhi", sung by Shailendra and Lata Mangeshkar, went on to become chartbusters.
Anand also featured in "Dil Se Mile Dil" (1978) and directed the Mithun Chakraborty-starrer "Kismet" in 1980.
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Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
