MUMBAI: Veteran filmmaker Chandra Barot, best known for directing the 1978 cult classic Don starring Amitabh Bachchan, passed away at a hospital in Bandra on Sunday. He was 86.His wife, Deepa Barot, confirmed the demise to TOI. “He had been battling pulmonary fibrosis for the past seven years,” she said. Barot was undergoing treatment at Guru Nanak Hospital under Dr Manish Shetty. He had earlier also been admitted to Jaslok Hospital.Chandra Barot’s decision to direct Don remains etched in Bollywood history — a gesture made to support his close friend and cinematographer-producer Nariman Irani. The film, which went on to become a blockbuster, was both a creative and emotional commitment for Barot.Before turning to direction, Barot had moved back to India from Tanzania due to racial unrest. He later began his career in the Hindi film industry as an assistant director with actor-filmmaker Manoj Kumar.
