Sajid Khan

Indian actor and singer (1951–2023)
the actor

Sajid Khan (28 December 1951 – 22 December 2023) was an Indian actor and singer. Born into poverty in the Bombay slums, He worked in a handful of Indian films, debuting in his father's Academy Award nominated Mother India (1957) and its sequel Son of India (1962). He later found more success overseas, working in international productions, including films and television shows in North America, such as Maya (1966) and its television adaptation, as well as the Philippines and United Kingdom. He was a teen idol in North America and the Philippines from the late 1960s to early 1970s.

Sajid was a poor child from the slums of Bombay (now Mumbai), in India's then Bombay State (now Maharashtra), before he was discovered by Bollywood filmmaker Mehboob Khan. Sajid started acting as a child appearing as the younger version of Sunil Dutt's character Birju in Mehboob Khan's Academy Award nominated Hindi film Mother India (1957). Sajid was unknown at the time. His salary in the film was He was later adopted by Mehboob Khan and his wife Sardar Akhtar, who named him Sajid Khan.

After his debut in Mother India in 1957, he played the title role in his adopted father's next and last film Son of India in 1962. According to Rauf Ahmed, though the film was not a success at the box office, Sajid's performance was praised by the critics. After his father's death in 1964, Sajid moved to the United States where he did his further education. Khan went on to achieve fame in the United States with a co starring role alongside Jay North in the 1966 film Maya. The film's success led to a television series of the same name airing on NBC from September 1967 to February 1968 and lasting 18 episodes. The show led to Sajid becoming a "teen idol" for a short time, appearing on the cover of popular magazines. He also had a short lived singing career, releasing a self titled album. In 1968, he guest starred in an episode of the television series The Big Valley, and appeared in the music variety show It's Happening as a guest judge. In the late 1960s, the actress Rekha was struggling to gain a foothold in films. She was a south Indian who spoke Hindi badly but whose English was good. At this time, several English language films and television serials with an Indian theme were being made, like Jungle Book and Maya. So, she thought of looking for roles as an Indian woman in foreign language films. She approached Khan, who was himself acting in Maya, and he tried to help her get some a bit role in the film, but failed. Shortly afterwards, Rekha made her Hindi language debut with Sawan Bhadon (1970), which was a hit, and her career in Hindi films was assured. Khan also found success in the Philippines in the early 1970s, starring as the male lead in a number of romantic comedy films opposite leading Philippine actresses Nora Aunor and Vilma Santos. He tried to get back into Hindi films, but none of his Hindi films from 1972 to 1983 worked financially. His career's peak period was in 1966–1974 and he was more successful in English films. His last film appearance was in the Merchant Ivory film Heat and Dust in 1983, where he played the role of "dacoit chief," seen fleetingly in only one scene with no spoken dialogue whatsoever.

Khan was married to a woman whose name is not known, and they became the parents of two sons, Stephanos, who lives in the UK, and Sameer. Khan and his wife divorced in 1990. By the early 1970s, Khan's career was more or less over. It is reported that, around this time, Khan opened a retail store with a small workshop in the back which made costume jewellery. 'Artistic' was the name of the retail store, located in India. Khan died on 22 December 2023, at the age of 71 after suffering a long battle with cancer.

+TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbumUS Bub. (Billboard)"Getting to Know You" (Colgems 1026)19688Sajid (1969)"Dream" (Colgems 1034)196919