Praveen Kumar Sobti, the actor who played Bheem in BR Chopra’s Mahabharat, is no more. He turned 74 in December of last year.
The Punjabi actor rose to prominence after portraying Bheem in the mythological series and was known for his massive physique. In addition to being an actor, he was an athlete who excelled in the hammer and disc throw. In addition to competing in the Olympics, he won medals at the Asian and Commonwealth Games.
Sobti, who used to be a Deputy Commandant in BSF, has won several medals for India in the Asian and Commonwealth Games, including the Asian games held in Hong Kong where he was a gold medallist. He also represented the country twice in the Olympics. He gained tremendous popularity in athletics during the 1960s and 70s.
After he entered showbiz, he worked in about 30 movies before meeting BR Chopra, who offered him Mahabharat. The rest is history. After the show, people remembered him more as Bhima than his real name.
In 2013, Praveen Kumar Sobti joined politics he contested unsuccessfully from Wazirpur in Delhi on the Aam Aadmi Party ticket. After this, he left AAP and joined the BJP. His last film was released in the year 2013. The name of the film was ‘Mahabharat Aur Barbarik’. Sobti essayed the character of Bhima here as well.
His other memorable role was as Mukhtaar Singh in Amitabh Bachchan’s cult classic film Shahenshah. Some of his films include Karishma Kudrat Kaa, Yudh, Zabardast, Singhasan, Khudgarz, Loha, Mohabbat Ke Dushman, Ilaaka and others.