Dev Anand’s last day

STYLE ICON: The perennially young actor defied age in style

London, December 4
Bollywood legend Dev Anand passed away in London on Saturday night. He had arrived in the British capital two weeks earlier for a medical check up.

Accompanied by his son Sunil, he checked into his favourite Indian-owned hotel, The Washington, in London's exclusive Mayfair district. His end came suddenly at around 10 pm on Saturday night. He was 88.

"Last night around 10 pm while he was still in the room he had a serious cardiac arrest", The Washington's proprietor Joginder Sanger told The Tribune. "Hotel staff immediately called the medics, but they failed to revive him." Dev Anand's body is being kept in a nearby hospital mortuary, pending the arrival of his wife and daughter.

Dev Anand's wife, Kalpana Kartik, their daughter and a niece are expected shortly in London when a final decision will be made on where to hold the cremation.

Sanger said that Gurdaspur-born Dev Anand was a much liked gentleman of the old school who visited London at least once a year and always stayed at The Washington.

Among those who have paid their tributes is Dev Anand's nephew and fellow film maker Shekhar Kapur who was quoted as saying on a Sunday tweet, "Dev Anand lived and died at his own terms. He was working one minute. Sat down and smiled. And was gone the next. So much to learn."