Raj Kiran Mahtani (born 5 February 1949) is a former Indian actor who is recognised for his work in Bollywood.[1][2][3] Born in a Sindhi family in Bombay, he made his debut in B. R. Ishara's Kaagaz Ki Nao (1975) and appeared in more than 100 films until the mid-90s.[4] Later he disappeared from the industry and was thought to be living as a recluse in the United States but conflicting reports from 2011 indicated his whereabouts were unknown.

Quick Facts Born, Status ...
Raj Kiran
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Raj Kiran in the late 1970s
Born (1949-02-05) 5 February 1949 (age 75)
StatusMissing
OccupationActor
Years active1975–1999
Notable workKaagaz Ki Nao
Karz
Baseraa
Arth
Raaj Tilak
Waaris
Ek Naya Rishta
Hip Hip Hurray
SpouseRoopa Mahtani
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Career

Raj Kiran made his debut opposite Sarika in B. R. Ishara's Kaagaz Ki Nao (1975).[5] In 1980, he had eight releases and his career picked up.[6] He was appreciated in leading roles in films such as Shikshaa (1979), Maan Abhiman (1980) and Ek Naya Rishta (1988).[7][8][9] as well as supporting roles in Karz (1980), Baseraa (1981), Arth (1982) and Raaj Tilak (1984) to name a few.[10] While Raj Kiran was often typecast as a kind-hearted romantic because of his chocolate good looks[4][11] he has also played some roles with gray shades as in Justice Chaudhury (1983).[12] During the 1990s, his film career slowed down. He made his television debut in the much acclaimed TV series Reporter (1994) also starring Shekhar Suman.[13]

Personal Life

Raj Kiran was born in Bombay to a Sindhi Hindu family. Raj Kiran is rumored to have gone into acute depression when his career declined and faced several domestic crises and was admitted to a mental asylum in Mumbai. He was later rumoured to have been living as a recluse in America. Deepti Naval tried to look for the missing actor through Facebook writing on her timeline "Looking for a friend from the film world his name is Raj Kiran – we have no news of him – last heard he was driving a cab in NY city if anyone has any clue, please tell . . ."[14]

"I’ve been wondering where Raj had disappeared. The question was haunting me for a very long time. Then these rumours of Raj being no more began doing the rounds. I was really disturbed. How can a colleague with whom I shared a really good times, just vanish from the face of earth? I decided to look up Raj’s elder brother Govind Mahtani to find out about Raj. I was so relieved when Govind told me that Raj was alive. But he was confined to an institution in Atlanta due to health problems. ... apparently, he looks after his own treatment by working within the institution. It’s a heart-rending situation for an actor who was so successful at one time".

Rishi Kapoor on Raj Kiran’s disappearance[15]

In June 2011, Rishi Kapoor, on a trip to the United States made a phone call to the missing actor's brother Gobind Mahtani, and was told that Raj Kiran was in a mental asylum in Atlanta but was not given more details.[16][17][18][15][14][9] However Raj Kiran's daughter Rishika subsequently issued a public statement negating the reports of Raj Kiran being found in Atlanta. She clarified that their family has been searching for him with the assistance of New York police and private detectives for years.[19][20]

Filmography

More information Year, Film ...
Year Film Role Notes
1975 Kaagaz Ki Nao Debut
1977 Kissa Kursi Ka Gopal
1979 Shikshaa Vijay Gupta
1980 Patita Ashok
1980 Karz Raja Ravi Varma
1980 Manokaamnaa
1980 Maan Abhimaan
1980 Yeh Kaisa Insaf Shankar
1981 Nakhuda Ravi Shankar
1981 Bulundi Vicky
1981 Baseraa Sagar
1981 Josh
1981 Kaaran
1982 Bezubaan Raman
1982 Arth Raj
1982 Star Shiv Kumar Varma
1983 Sun Meri Laila
1983 Mazdoor Ramesh Saxena
1984 Ghar Ek Mandir Vijay
1984 Raaj Tilak Shamsher Singh
1984 Hip Hip Hurray Sandeep
1985 Aaj Ka Daur Ram
1985 Ghar Dwaar Chandar
1985 Faasle Shivraj
1985 Arjun Inspector Ravi Rane
1985 Teri Meherbaniyan Gopi
1986 Ilzaam Satish Singh
1986 Shatru Raj Chaudhry
1987 Ghar Ka Sukh
1987 Woh Din Aayenga
1987 Khooni Mahal Raj
1987 Mard Ki Zabaan Anand
1987 Goraa
1987 Manu The Great
1988 Pyar Ka Mandir Collector Vijay Kumar
1988 Ek Hi Maqsad Raj
1988 Bahaar
1988 Waaris Shravan Singh
1988 Ek Naya Rishta Rajiv Tandon
1989 Waqt Ke Zanjeer
1989 Paanch Paap Vijay Singh
1989 Ghar Ho To Aisa Vijay Kumar
1990 Police Public Vijay Sharma
1991 Pyar Ka Devta Advocate Gopal
1991 Karz Chukana Hai Vijay Mathur
1993 Zakhmi Rooh Rocky
1995 Kartavya Inspector Sooraj Singh Flashback Cameo
1999 Chudail No. 1
1999 Akeli Boss Delayed release in 2014
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Television

  • Reporter (1994)
  • Aakhir Kaun (1996)
  • Aahat (1997–98)

See also

References

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