Filmmaker Hansal Mehta pays tribute to actor Mukul Dev

Filmmaker Hansal Mehta on Sunday posted an emotional tribute for his buddy Mukul Dev, remembering him as a “devastatingly handsome” artist who gave him the story for the 2017 crucial hit “Omerta”.

Dev, finest recognized for his roles in movies reminiscent of “Son of Sardaar”, “Yamla Pagla Deewana” and “Jai Ho”, handed away on Friday night time in New Delhi because of ailing well being, stated his brother Rahul Dev. The actor’s final rites have been carried out within the nationwide capital on Saturday.

In a heartfelt Instagram put up, Mehta wrote, “As the weight of this loss settles in, I realise there’s still so much more I want to say about my friend Mukul.”

“I will miss Mukul deeply. His booming laughter at our inside jokes, his unmatched gift for storytelling, that unmistakable voice… He acted in two of my unreleased films and a TV show—somehow in the shadows of it all, we became very close. We bonded over booze, broken hearts, and the foolish hope that things would one day make sense. For years, we were gym buddies, pushing each other through reps and regrets,” he added.

Describing Dev as somebody whose appeal may “light up a stadium”, Mehta stated he had all of the makings of a profitable movie star.

A former mannequin, Dev made his performing debut with the 1996 film “Dastak” reverse one other newcomer, 1994 Miss Universe crown winner Sushmita Sen.

“He had what most people only dream of: a dream launch, big directors, prominent co-stars. He had the look, the talent, the pedigree. But his career became a collection of missed opportunities and near breakthroughs. A story of what could’ve been. A string of ‘what ifs’.

“And I think those what ifs chipped away at his spirit. Slowly, quietly, they filled him with a sense of defeat and resignation—an ache that often found its only solace in booze. Behind the laughter and bravado was a man struggling to reconcile with the dreams that eluded him,” he added.

Mehta stated Dev was a “gifted writer” and added that the actor gave him the story of “Omerta” again in 2003.

The 2017 film featured Rajkummar Rao as British-born Pakistani terrorist Omar Saeed Sheikh, who was freed in alternate for passengers of a hijacked Indian Airlines aircraft in 1999 and was later accused of killing journalist Daniel Pearl.

“I remember the joy in his voice when the film was finally made, the pride when he saw it with festival audiences, and that infectious excitement when his name came up in the writing credits.

“Every time we spoke, he’d chuckle and say, ‘Hansie, kya film banayi yaar. International. Soch bhi nahi sakta tha ki aisi film mein I’d have a writing credit. This is so good for me.’ That credit made him feel seen. Respected. Validated. I just wish we had done more together,” Mehta stated.

Recalling their final dialog, the filmmaker stated it was crammed with their trademark banter and a “fake Feroz Khan accent” that they used between them.

“But behind the laughter, I sensed something heavier—a quiet sadness, an air of disappointment, a kind of loneliness he never really shared. Go well, my beautiful, broken, brilliant friend. Phir Milenge,” he concluded the put up.