Born of an Afghan father and Iranian mother in 1939, Khan arrived in Mumbai in the late 1950s, and played the second lead in his first Hindi film — the Sunil Dutt-Waheeda Rehman starrer Didi, in 1960. His first success — Oonche Log, starring Ashok Kumar and Raj Kumar — came five years later, but it was only after the 1969 blockbuster Aadmi Aur Insaan, in which he played the sacrificing lover, that Khan became a star.

Khan made his debut as a director in 1972 with Apradh, a film that he also produced under the banner of F K Films. Three years later, his second film Dharmatma, based loosely on the Hollywood blockbuster Godfather, catapulted Khan into the big league.

Khan gave the impression of a man who lived life on his own terms. Yet, friends and acquaintances in the industry recognised a softer, mellow side to the flamboyant and fiercely independent actor. Anil Kapoor, who acted in his racy Jaanbaaz (1986) and has also worked with him in his last film Welcome, says Khan was a true Pathan: “Tough on the outside, but very generous and true to his friends till his last breath. If he was fond of you, he’d become an innocent child with you.”

Khan is remembered best for his film Qurbani (1980), in which he played a crook called Rajesh. The film, starring yesteryear diva Zeenat Aman and actor Vinod Khanna, was a trendsetter in terms of style. A remake of Qurbani was to go on the floors last year, but was postponed due to Khan’s ailment.

Director Suparn Varma, who had Khan do a special appearance for his Ek Hasina Thi, says the actor’s charisma was unmatched in the industry. “He was a style icon and this used to show through in his films. Qurbani was one of the best-looking films of that time and he could easily fit a character that needed to be bold, larger than life and fearless,” Varma says.

Khan is survived by his actor son Fardeen and daughter Laila from ex-wife Sundari, whom he married in his struggling years but parted ways from nearly 24 years ago. Ever since, it’s said, Khan used to spend much of his time looking after his horses at his Bangalore farm.

In the last few days of his life, Khan had expressed a wish to be with his beloved pets. “He was a regular at the races in Bangalore and his horses were known to be some of the finest,” says filmmaker Sanjay Gupta, adding, “it was his last wish to be where he was born and with those he loved the most. That says a lot about the kind of man he was.”