Veteran actor and former Union minister Vinod Khanna died in Mumbai this morning at the age of 70 after battling cancer for years. He is survived by his wife Kavita Khanna, sons Rahul, Akshaye and Sakshi, and daughter Shraddha Khanna. The news came as a shock to many film buffs and fans since his son Akshaye had around two weeks back said that his father was doing better. On Thursday morning, the spokesperson of Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital - where Khanna was admitted - confirmed that Khanna breathed his last at 11.20am due to advanced bladder carcinoma. ALSO READ | Vinod Khanna dead, he was 70 During the span of his illustrious career, Khanna was known as quite a heartthrob - some even believe he gave a stiff competition to Amitabh Bachchan at his peak. He worked in more than 100 films and then later on took on responsibilities as a politician, and Member of Parliament from Gurdaspur, Punjab. READ | Vinod Khanna, as minister, tried bridging gap between India, Pakistan through films As soon as news of his demise was known, fans and film buffs have taken to various social media platforms to express their shock, sadness and pay tribute to the actor. While many shared old pictures of Khanna from his many movies, other recited couplets and some of their favourite dialogues. Some of them even brought out the coincidence that another veteran actor Feroz Khan had died on April 27, 2009. Here are some of the initial tweets: Rest in peace, #VinodKhanna ji. pic.twitter.com/4ZLQ9YjP0B — Delhi Decoded (@DelhiDecoded) April 27, 2017 Famous personality actor Vinod Khanna dies after suffering from cancer. RIP ???????? pic.twitter.com/nZB611XULs — vikram yadav (@vikramy2122) April 27, 2017 #VinodKhanna The handsome of Bollywood dies. RIP You will be missed pic.twitter.com/iYTtRB1SRc — Babaji ka thullu (@ThulluRam) April 27, 2017 He was the handsomest of them all, who got lost somewhere along the way. Or maybe he found himself. Rest in Peace Vinod Khanna. — Vivek (@kaul_vivek) April 27, 2017 Starstruck in 1987 meeting #VinodKhanna on sets of 'Dayavan' in Madras. He had just beat the crap out of Amrish Puri's character. RIP, sir. pic.twitter.com/6lWVb7jmQf — Shiv Aroor (@ShivAroor) April 27, 2017 Sad day. A fine actor. #RIP #VinodKhanna — Záchari (@RadhaAzure) April 27, 2017 Sad to inform. Veteran Actor and MP #VinodKhanna passed away. #RIPVinodKhanna — Meenakshi Kandwal (@MinakshiKandwal) April 27, 2017 Coincidentally, 27th April is also a death anniversary of legendary Feroz khan. The Qurbani duo are together again. #Vinodkhanna #rip — Dipesh Parmar (@dipeshparmar46) April 27, 2017 Saddened by the death of @VinodKhanna . Rest in peace. — Ashutosh Jha (@ashutoshjha7771) April 27, 2017 Bollywood legend Vinod Khanna dies from cancer at the age of 70 - he had a wide following in Pakistan - he was born in Peshawar - RIP pic.twitter.com/D2v8XE6LA2 — omar r quraishi (@omar_quraishi) April 27, 2017 RIP to Feroz Khan on death anniversary #FerozKhan with #AmitabhBachchan #VinodKhanna #RaajKumar @FardeenFKhan pic.twitter.com/OBs8Yc5zkH — Movies N Memories (@BombayBasanti) April 27, 2017 Zindagi to bewafa hain ek din thukraigi ..Maut mehboob hain apne saath lekar jayegi..RIP #VinodKhanna pic.twitter.com/WZs4Egk0JA — Vineet Malhotra (@malhotravineet7) April 27, 2017 A man with a strong screen presence. He gave his fans some really good movies. RIP#VinodKhanna — Asma Ali Zain (@asmaalizain) April 27, 2017 Fellow actors and politicians also took to Twitter to mourn the loss of the veteran actor. Anupam Kher tweeted, "#VinodKhanna ji had a magnetic charm & persona. Both on & off screen. He was kind, affectionate & helpful. Loved his panther like walk", while yet another actor turned politician Shatrughan Sinha tweeted, "Vinod Khanna, truly "Mere Apne", one of my most admired and loved personalities, the supremely handsome & talented superstar is no more. Right from films to politics, Vinod Khanna & I sailed together and he leaves behind an entire generation & more of fans, admirers.friends, well wishers & loved ones grieving after him. May his noble soul find solace in the land of the almighty. Love you, miss you".
