Kabir Bedi

Kabir Bedi
Bedi in 2012
Born (1946-01-16) 16 January 1946 (age 78)
Occupations
  • Actor
  • television presenter
Years active1971–present
Spouses
  • (m. 1969; div. 1974)
  • Susan Humphreys
    (m. 1980; div. 1990)
  • (m. 1992; div. 2005)
  • Parveen Dusanj
    (m. 2016)
Children3
Parent
HonorsOrder of Merit of the Italian Republic[1]

Kabir Bedi (born 16 January 1946) is an Indian actor. His career has spanned three continents covering India, the United States and especially Italy among other European countries in three media: film, television and theatre. He is noted for his role as Emperor Shah Jahan in Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story and the villainous Sanjay Verma in the 1980s blockbuster Khoon Bhari Maang. He is best known in Italy and Europe for playing the pirate Sandokan in the popular Italian TV miniseries and for his role as the villainous Gobinda in the 1983 James Bond film Octopussy. Bedi is based in India and lives in Mumbai.[2]

Early life and education[edit]

Kabir Bedi was born in Lahore in the Punjab Province of British India (now in Punjab, Pakistan) on 16 January 1946.[3] His father, Baba Pyare Lal Singh Bedi, was a Punjabi Sikh author, philosopher and a direct descendent of Guru Nanak.[4][5] His mother, Freda Bedi, was an English woman born in Derby, England,[4][6] who became famous as the first Western woman to take ordination in Tibetan Buddhism.[7] He was educated at Sherwood College, Nainital, Uttarakhand, and St. Stephen's College, Delhi.

Career[edit]

Bedi began his career in Indian theatre and then moved on to Hindi films. He remains one of the first international actors from India who started out in Hindi films, worked in Hollywood films and became a star in Europe.

Stage acting[edit]

As a stage actor, Bedi has performed Shakespeare's Othello as well as portrayed a historical Indian king in Tughlaq, and a self-destructive alcoholic in The Vultures. In London he starred in The Far Pavilions, the West End musical adaptation of M. M. Kaye's novel, at the Shaftesbury Theatre. In 2011 Bedi played Emperor Shah Jahan in Taj, a play written by John Murrell, a Canadian playwright for the Luminato Festival in Toronto. In 2013, this play was recommissioned and went on an eight-week multi-city tour of Canada.[8]

Film career[edit]

In the James Bond film Octopussy, Bedi played the villain's aide Gobinda.

He has acted in over 60 Indian films. In the historical epic Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story, he starred as the Emperor Shah Jahan. Other starring Hindi film roles include Raj Khosla's Kacche Dhaage, Rakesh Roshan's Khoon Bhari Maang and Farah Khan's Main Hoon Na.

Bedi shot a movie with Hrithik Roshan (Kites), Govinda (Showman), and Akshay Kumar (Blue).[9] He also starred in Deepa Mehta's film, Kamagata Maru with Amitabh Bachchan and John Abraham. He acted in the Tamil film Aravaan, directed by Vasanthabalan.

Bedi played roles in Columbia Pictures' The Beast of War, a film on the Russian war in Afghanistan, directed by Kevin Reynolds, as well as the acclaimed Italian film Andata Ritorno, by Marco Ponti, winner of the David di Donatello Award. In 2017, he acted in the Telugu historical movie Gautamiputra Satakarni, as Nahapana, an important ruler of the Western Kshatrapas.

Television career[edit]

Bedi has appeared on American television, in Hallmark's African epic Forbidden Territory, and Ken Follett's On Wings of Eagles and Red Eagle. He played Friar Sands in The Lost Empire, for NBC. He also acted in Dynasty, Murder, She Wrote, Magnum, P.I., Hunter, Knight Rider and Highlander: The Series.

In Europe, his greatest success was Sandokan, the saga of a romantic Southeast Asian pirate during British colonial times, an Italian-German-French TV series which broke viewership records across Europe. He recently starred in a prime-time Italian television series, Un Medico in Famiglia, on RAI TV.

For over a year, Bedi starred in The Bold and the Beautiful, the second most-watched television show in the world, seen by over a billion people in 149 countries.

He had his own cinematic talk show on Indian TV, Director's Cut, a 13-part special series interviewing the country's leading directors. His success on television continued in 2013 with award-winning prime-time shows Guns and Glory: The Indian Soldier and Vandemataram, for India's news channels Headlines Today and Aaj Tak.[10]

Kabir Bedi after receiving his knighthood

In the Indian Biblical television series 'Bible Ki Kahaniya', Bedi played both the young and aged Abraham.

Radio career[edit]

In 2007 he starred in Chat, a radio show aired by RAI Radio2, in the role of Sandokan. In 2012, he did a series of Radio One programmes titled Women of Gold and Men of Steel in honour of industry champions in India. In 2017 he did another series in English for Radio One, Ten on Ten, celebrating the top ten innovations out of India. He also did the year-end special series, Best of 2017.

Writing[edit]

Bedi is a regular contributor to Indian publications including the Times of India and Tehelka on political and social issues affecting the country. He is also seen debating such topics on Indian national television.[11]

Charity[edit]

In February 2017, Bedi was announced as the new 'brand ambassador' for international development organisation, Sightsavers, saying on his appointment, "Today there is immense awareness and attempt towards eye health and care in India and Sightsavers have shown way to people at large in the country with their achievements in the area of eye care."[12] Bedi is the honorary brand ambassador for Italian Charity Care and Share Italia, which educates and looks after street children, from school to university, in Andhra Pradesh and Telegana.[13]

Awards and achievements[edit]

Since 1982 Bedi has been a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (who are responsible for presenting the Oscar awards). He is also a voting member of the Screen Actors Guild.

He has won numerous film, advertising and popularity awards across Europe and India.[14]

By decree of the President of the Italian Republic of 2 June 2010, Bedi was officially knighted. He received the highest ranking civilian honour of the Italian Republic and was bestowed the title of "Cavaliere" (Knight) of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.[1] He has recently received Honorary Degree from Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India.

Personal life[edit]

Bedi married four times and had three children, Pooja, Siddharth (deceased) and Adam. He was married to Protima Bedi, an Odissi dancer. Their daughter Pooja Bedi is a magazine / newspaper columnist and former actress. Siddharth, who attended Carnegie Mellon University, was diagnosed with schizophrenia and died by suicide in 1997 at the age of 26.[15]

As his marriage to Protima began to break down, he started a relationship with Parveen Babi. They never married. He later married British-born fashion designer Susan Humphreys. Their son, Adam Bedi, is an international model[16] who made his Hindi film debut with the thriller Hello? Kaun Hai!.[17] This marriage ended in divorce.

In the early 1990s, Bedi married TV and radio presenter Nikki Bedi. They had no children and divorced in 2005. After that, Bedi started a relationship with British-born Parveen Dusanj,[18][19][20] whom he married a day before his 70th birthday.[21]

Bedi supports the anti-government struggle in Myanmar, and he is an official ambassador of the Burma Campaign UK.[22] He is the brand ambassador for Rotary International South Asia for its Teach Programme and the Total Literacy Mission in India and South Asia.

Filmography[edit]

Films[edit]

Year Film title Character
1971 Hulchal Mahesh Jetley
Seema
1972 Rakhi Aur Hathkadi Suraj
Sazaa Brijmohan
Anokha Daan
1973 Kuchhe Dhaage Pandit Tulsiram / Daku Roopa
Yauwan Jhumru
1974 Manzilein Aur Bhi Hain
Maa Bahen Aur Biwi
Ishk Ishk Ishk Diwana/Ravikant Vyas
1975 Anari Vikram
Daaku Daku Raju
1976 Nagin Uday
Harfan Maula Faulad Singh
Bullet Durga Prasad
The Black Corsair The Black Corsair (Italy)
1977 Daku Aur Mahatma Sangram Singh
Vishwasghaat Uday
La tigre è ancora viva: Sandokan alla riscossa! Sandokan
1978 The Thief of Baghdad Prince Taj
1979 Ashanti Malik
Aakhri Kasam Kishan / Badal
Yuvraaj Samrat Surya Dev Singh
1981 The Archer: Fugitive from the Empire Gar
1982 40 Days of Musa Dagh Gabriel Bagradian
Satan's Mistress The Spirit
Girl from India Artist
1983 Octopussy Gobinda
1988 Escuadrón Koura
Khoon Bhari Maang Sanjay Verma
Mera Shikar Ravi
The Beast Akbar
1990 Police Public Senior Inspector Shah Nawaz Khan
Haar Jeet
Shera Shamshera Shankar
1991 Kurbaan Inspector Suraj Singh
Yeh Aag Kab Bujhegi Ranveer Singh
Vishkanya Forest Officer Vikram Singh
1992 Dil Aashna Hai Rai Bahadur Digvijay Singh
Yalgaar Raj Pratap Singhal
Beyond Justice Moulet
Lambu Dada Lambu Dada
1993 Kshatriya Thakur Ganga Singh (Police Officer)
Yugandhar Colonel Kanir
1994 Salaami Captain Rehmat Khan
Lie Down with Lions Kabir
The Maharaja's Daughter Chandragupta
1995 OP Centre Abdul Fazawi
Kismat Rajan
Aatank Hi Aatank Police Inspector
1996 The Return of Sandokan Sandokan
1998 Mashamal – Ritorno al Deserto Tahar Id Bran
1999 Kohram Brigadier Bedi
2001 The Lost Empire Friar Sand
2002 Kranti Mahendra Pratap Rana
Maine Dil Tujhko Diya Mr. Verma (Ayesha's Father)
2003 Talaash Chhote Pathan
The Hero: Love Story of a Spy Mr. Zakaria
2004 Father Karl (Father & Violinist)
Rudraksh Pandit Ved Bhushan
Asambhav
Kismat Raj Maliya
Roundtrip Tolstoj (Italian film)
Main Hoon Na General Amar Singh Bakshi
2005 Bewafaa Anjali's Father
Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story Emperor Shah Jahan
2006 Do Raha
Jaanleva Rakesh Khullar
A All About Her
Take 3 Girls Mo
2008 Showman
2009 Blue Captain Jagat Malhotra
2010 Kites Bob Grover
2011 Yaara O Dildaara Karam Singh Sandhu
2012 Aravaan Tamil film
Chakravyuh Mahanta, an industrialist and negotiator for the government
2015 Dilwale Dev Malik
Anarkali Jaffer Imam
2016 Teraa Surroor A A Khan
Mohenjo Daro Maham
2017 Gautamiputra Satakarni Nahapana
Edict of Expulsion 1492 Sultan Bayezid
Paisa Vasool RAW Chief
2018 Jaane Kyun De Yaaron Shera
Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster 3 Maharaja Hari Singh
2023 Shaakuntalam Kashyapa Maharshi[23]

Television[edit]

TV show title Release year Status Character
Sandokan 1976 European TV miniseries Sandokan
La tigre è ancora viva: Sandokan alla riscossa! 1977 European TV miniseries Sandokan
Dynasty 1982 TV series Farouk Ahmed
General Hospital 1983 TV series Rama
Knight Rider November 1985 TV series Vascone
Dynasty 1986 TV series Farouk Ahmed
On Wings of Eagles 1986 TV series Mohammed
The Days and Nights of Molly Dod May 1987 TV series Bill
Misteri della Giungla Nera, I – a.k.a. The Mysteries of the Dark Jungle 1991 TV miniseries Kammamuri
Il Principe del Deserto – a.k.a. Desert Law 1991 TV series Moulet Beni-Zair
The Bold and the Beautiful September 1994 TV series Prince Omar
Maharaja's Daughter 1994 TV series Chandragupta
Highlander: The Series 20 November 1995 TV series Kamir
Bible Ki Kahaniya 1995 TV series Abraham, the Patriarch
Il Ritorno di Sandokan 6 October 1996 TV miniseries Sandokan
Noi siamo angeli – a.k.a. We are Angels 16 February 1997 TV miniseries Gen. Napoleon Durate
Forbidden Territory: Stanley's Search for Livingstone 7 December 1997 TV series Khamis Bin Abdullah
Team Knight Rider 9 February 1998 TV series Aristotle Drago
Murder, She Wrote February 1988 TV series Vikram Singh
Magnum, P.I. 10 February 1988 TV series Malcolm
L'isola dei famosi 2004 Italian reality show Himself
The Bold and the Beautiful 4 May 2005 TV series Prince Omar
Vivere May 2006 Italian TV series Emir Ibrahim
Director's Cut 2007 TV special series Himself
Un medico in famiglia 5 2007 Italian TV series Kabir
Ganga Kii Dheej 2010–2011 Hindi TV series Dada Bhai
Buddha 2013 Hindi TV series Asita Muni (Cameo)
VandeMataram 2013 TV special news series Himself
Guns & Glory: The Indian Soldier 2013 TV special news series Himself
Jai Ho 2014 TV special news series Himself
Thinkistan 2019 Web series Danish Azeem

Reality shows[edit]

Year Show title Role Status Sr.
2021-2022 Grande Fratello VIP (season 6) Contestant (entered day 113, evicted day 162) Evicted 15

Radio[edit]

Radio title Release year Status Character
Ch@t (Italian fiction) 2007 RAI Radio2 Sandokan
'Women of Gold' 2012 RadioOne Himself
'Men of Steel' 2012 Radio One Himself
'Ten on Ten' – 'Ten Biggest Impacts This Last Decade' 2017 Radio One Himself
'Best of 2017' 2017 Radio One Himself

Dubbing roles[edit]

Live action films[edit]

Film title Actor Character Dub language Original language Original year release Dub year release Notes
Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time Ben Kingsley Nizam Hindi English 2010 2010 Performed alongside Yudhvir Dahiya who voiced Jake Gyllenhaal as Dastan and Joy Sengupta who voiced Toby Kebbell as Prince Garsiv in Hindi.
Fantastic Four Reg E. Cathey Dr. Franklin Storm Hindi English 2015 2015 Performed alongside Karan Trivedi who voiced Miles Teller as Reed Richards / Mister Fantastic in Hindi.

Voiceovers in ads and commercials[edit]

Project Type Language Year
The Keeper of the Flame – The History of TATA Documentary English 2007
An Introduction to CHILDLINE India Public awareness campaign – narrator English 2008
Aircel Save the Tiger Campaign Public awareness campaign – narrator English 2009
Ford Motors launch Figo, India Live event English 2010
Somnath Temple, Gujarat Sound & light show English 2010
Red Fort, New Delhi Sound & light show English 2011
Virasat-e-Khalsa – Khalsa Heritage Memorial Complex, Punjab Narrator English 2011
Apollo Tyres Advertisement English 2013
Jindal Panther Advertisement English 2014
Banda Singh Bahadur – War Memorial, Punjab Sound & light show English 2014
TAJ Hotels, Resorts & Palaces Advertisement English 2014
DHL Advertisement Hindi 2015
Yamaha Advertisement Hindi 2015
Mount of Excellence Documentary narrator English 2015
Parle Advertisement Hindi & English 2016
Tanishq Advertisement English 2016
Konark Sun Temple, Odisha Sound & light show English 2017

Voting memberships[edit]

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
The Screen Actors Guild
The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists
The British Actors' Equity Association

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Knight in shining armour". The Times of India. 11 December 2010. Archived from the original on 20 November 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2016.
  2. ^ "Residence of Kabir bedi". Archived from the original on 21 December 2015.
  3. ^ "Kabir Bedi Birthday 2024: Tracing the actor's international film journey". MSN. 16 January 2024. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  4. ^ a b Butalia, Urvashi (24 February 2015). Partition: The Long Shadow. Penguin UK. p. 159. ISBN 978-93-5118-949-7.
  5. ^ "Kabir Bedi reveals he is a '17th generation descendant' of Guru Nanak as he commemorates his 550th birth anniversary". The Times of India. 13 November 2019. Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  6. ^ Whitehead, Andrew (10 February 2019). The Lives of Freda: The Political, Spiritual and Personal Journeys of Freda Bedi. Speaking Tiger Books. ISBN 978-93-88874-08-3.
  7. ^ Mackenzie, Vicki (2017). The Revolutionary Life of Freda Bedi (1st ed.). Boulder, CO: Shambhala Publications. pp. xii. ISBN 9781611804256.
  8. ^ "Kabir Bedi & Lisa Ray Discuss 'TAJ'". 16 October 2013. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  9. ^ Collection of articles on Kabir Bedi Archived 29 June 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  10. ^ "The NT Awards – 2014 Winners". Archived from the original on 12 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  11. ^ Bedi, Kabir. "Kabir Bedi Blog". Archived from the original on 18 December 2012.
  12. ^ "Kabir Bedi is Sightsavers' brand ambassador". 28 February 2017. Archived from the original on 1 March 2017. Retrieved 28 February 2017.
  13. ^ "Care & Share Italia names Kabir Bedi ambassador". The Hindu. 4 January 2019.
  14. ^ "Kabir Bedi: Awards page". Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2009.
  15. ^ Kabir Bedi Misses Late Son on Father's Day Archived 18 January 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ "Adam Bedi - Official Site". Archived from the original on 25 June 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  17. ^ Adam Bedi baptised[dead link]
  18. ^ "Let's keep it a surprise: Parveen Dusanj". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013.
  19. ^ "When Dad likes them young!". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 15 September 2013.
  20. ^ Ahmed, Afsana; Sharma, Smrity (6 May 2007). "Another Parveen is Kabir Bedi's love". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2007.
  21. ^ "Kabir Bedi ties knot with Parveen Dusanj on 70th birthday". CNN-IBN. 17 January 2016. Archived from the original on 19 January 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
  22. ^ "Kabir Bedi's voice for Burma's Mandela". Daily News & Analysis. Archived from the original on 2 February 2008.
  23. ^ "When will Shaakuntalam premiere on OTT? Check release date, time and where to watch Samantha Ruth Prabhu's film online". The Economic Times. 7 May 2023. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 17 May 2023.

External links[edit]