Raj Kiran (actor)

Raj Kiran
Kiran in the late 1970s
Born	(1949-06-17) 17 June 1949 Bombay, Bombay State, India
Status	Missing, presumed dead
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1973–2003
Notable work	Kaagaz Ki Nao Karz Baseraa Arth Raaj Tilak Waaris Ek Naya Rishta Hip Hip Hurray
Spouse	Roopa Mahtani

Raj Kiran Mahtani (born 17 June 1949) is an Indian former actor, who is best known for his work in Bollywood films.^[1][2] Born into a Sindhi family in Bombay, he made his debut in B. R. Ishara's Kaagaz Ki Nao in 1975 and appeared in more than 100 films, until the 1990s.^[3] He later disappeared from the film industry and was believed to have been living as a recluse in the United States, but conflicting reports from 2011, have indicated his current whereabouts are unknown.

Kiran made his acting debut opposite Sarika in B. R. Ishara's Kaagaz Ki Nao in 1975.^[4] In 1980, he appeared in 8 films and he started to get noticed.^[5] He appeared in leading roles in films such as Shikshaa (1979), Maan Abhiman (1980) and Ek Naya Rishta (1988).^[6][7][8] He also had supporting roles in films such as Karz (1980), Baseraa (1981), Arth (1982) and Raaj Tilak (1984).^[9] While Kiran was often cast as a kind-hearted romantic hero because of his chocolate boy good looks^[3][10] he also played some roles with gray shades, as in Justice Chaudhury (1983).^[11] His film career started to slow down in the 1990s. He also appeared in the acclaimed TV series Reporter (1994–1995) which also started Shekhar Suman.^[12]

Kiran was born in Bombay to a Sindhi Hindu family. He is rumored to have gone into acute depression, when his career declined and faced several domestic crises and was later admitted to a mental asylum in Mumbai. He was later rumoured to have been living as a recluse, in the United States. Deepti Naval tried to look for Kiran through Facebook, writing: "Looking for a friend from the film world, his name is Raj Kiran – we have no news of him – last heard he was driving a cab in New York, if anyone has any clue, please tell . . ."^[13]

In June 2011, Rishi Kapoor, who was on a trip to the United States, made a phone call to Kiran's brother Gobind Mahtani and was told that Kiran was in a mental asylum in Atlanta, but was not given more details.^{[15][16][17][14][13][8]} However Kiran's daughter Rishika, subsequently issued a public statement, negating the reports of Kiran being found in Atlanta. She clarified that the family had been searching for him, with the assistance of New York police and private detectives for years.^[18][19]

• Amrita (1987–1988)
• Apariita (1993–1994)
• Reporter (1994–1995)
• Indrajaal (1995 –1996)
• Aakhir Kaun (1996)
• Aahat (1997–1998)
• Yeh Hain Raaz (1998–1999)

• List of people who disappeared

• Raj Kiran at IMDb
• NDTV on Raj Kiran