Acclaimed Indian actor Irrfan Khan, whose international movie career included hits such as Slumdog Millionaire, Life of Pi and The Amazing Spider-Man, has died at the age of 53, his publicist said on Wednesday.

Born in the Indian desert state of Rajasthan on January 7, 1967, Khan discovered an early passion for acting and studied at the elite National School of Drama.

But, his training in Shakespeare and Chekhov did little to ease his entry into the Hindi film industry, which, at the time, was largely focused on churning out formulaic song-and-dance blockbusters.

His drama school training came in handy when he was cast in Maqbool and Haider – contemporary Hindi adaptations of Macbeth and Hamlet.

But his life took a tragic turn in 2018 when he was diagnosed with cancer. The news devastated his fans and India’s film community.

Khan took a sabbatical to seek treatment in London – accompanied by his family – before returning to play the role of a middle-aged father in Angrezi Medium, his final film and a follow-up to the 2017 hit Hindi Medium.

In an interview with the Mumbai Mirror newspaper last month, he described life after the diagnosis as “a roller-coaster ride, a memorable one”.

“Happy moments were underlined because of the inherent uncertainty. We cried a little and laughed a lot,” he said.