Shakti Kapoor, who has often starred opposite the late Kader Khan in several films, expressed his sorrow on the veteran actor's passing. He said that Khan was lonely during his sickness and pointed out that people only remember him after his death, in an interaction with Hindustan Times.

"When Kader Khan was not working for the last decade and was suffering, nobody was concerned about him. Why was he left so lonely? And why are actors left so alone when they are sick or not doing too well? Kader Khan was financially very secure but very lonely because when he was sick, not many people visited him or spent time with him. He was left alone with his family," said Shakti.

Shatrughan Sinha, who has also worked with Khan in several films was of the view that everyone needs to take better care of artistes so that they don't feel neglected, reports IANS.

"Why was he in Canada during the time of his death? Kader Khan has given so much to our entertainment industry... What a sad start to 2018. There is a lesson to be learnt from Kader Khan's death in a foreign country," said Shatrughan. He called Khan  "one of the pillars of Bollywood", who was not just an excellent actor but also an outstanding writer.

As per reports, he was suffering from Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, a degenerative disease that causes loss of balance, difficulty in walking and dementia. Khan was admitted to a hospital in Canada and passed away at 81 on 31 December. His son Sarfaraz confirmed that the last rites will be conducted in the country.

Born in Kabul, Khan made his acting debut in 1973 with Rajesh Khanna's Daag and has featured in over 300 films.

He wrote dialogues for over 250 movies. Before becoming an actor he had written dialogues for Randhir Kapoor-Jaya Bachchan's Jawani Diwani. As a screenwriter, Khan frequently collaborated with Manmohan Desai and Prakash Mehra. His films with Desai include Dharam Veer, Ganga Jamuna Saraswati, Coolie, Desh Premee, Suhaag, Parvarish and Amar Akbar Anthony and films with Mehra include Jwalamukhi, Sharaabi, Lawaaris and Muqaddar Ka Sikandar.