Trigger Warning: This article contains a mention of death.

Veteran Marathi actor Vijay Kadam left for his heavenly abode on Saturday morning. He was 68. The senior actor had been reportedly battling cancer for a long time. Kadam’s friend, actor Jaywant Wadkar, confirmed his demise.

According to ANI, Jaywant said, “He had been courageously fighting cancer. Initially, he recovered, but his health eventually deteriorated.” Kadam’s friend added that he had an acidity attack around 25 days ago.

Talking about his filmography in Indian cinema, Wadkar stated that Vijay Kadam was “extremely talented”. He said further that he explored various projects ranging from Marathi cinema to Hindi films in his decades-long career.

Wadkar, who considered Vijay Kadam as his family, praised the late actor by saying, “It is impossible to find an actor like him again.” While mourning the loss of his friend, Wadkar said that his death has left a void in the industry.

As per the agency, Kadam’s cremation took place at the Andheri-Oshiwara crematorium on Saturday afternoon. The late actor is survived by his wife and son.

Vijay Kadam began his cancer treatment last year and underwent chemotherapy along with a couple of surgeries, News18 reported. He is best remembered for his contribution to Marathi cinema and theater.

His notable works in the Marathi film industry include Irsal Kaarti, De Danadan, Chashme Bahaddar, and many more. He also worked in Marathi movies like Police Line, Halad Rusli Kunku Hasala, and De Dhadak Bedhadak.

He rose to fame after starring in Purshottam Berde’s Marathi stage play, Tur Tur (1983-84). The play also featured late actor Laxmikanth Berde of Hum Aapke Hain Koun fame. Vijay started his acting career in theater in the 1980s era. Apart from Tur Tur, he also worked in Viccha Majhi Puri Kara and Pappa Sanga Kunache.

Vijay Kadam appeared in Arshad Warsi‘s debut film, Tere Mere Sapne. Kadam played the role of traffic policeman in it. The 1996 movie also starred Chandrachur Singh and Priya Gill. The late actor last appeared in the Marathi TV series Ti Prat Aaliye. The show was released in 2021.

Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie, two of Hollywood’s greatest, barely got the opportunity to collaborate, except for 2010’s The Tourist. The action thriller encompasses Jolie’s agenda to establish Depp, who plays an American tourist visiting Italy, as her lover who is wanted by the police. 

In real life, Depp was enamored by Jolie’s beauty and talents, inspiring a worthy remark still cherished by fans. After the film underwent multiple revisions, the Pirates of the Caribbean star finally made it opposite Jolie to work on their first and only film ever. Director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck helmed The Tourist.

Despite mixed reviews of their on-screen chemistry, as it came with high expectations, the A-listers’s support for each other was unhindered. They publicly lauded each other’s work, with Johnny Depp, 61, celebrating his co-star with a poetic insinuation. 

“She’s everything. She’s kind of a walking poem, Angelina is,” Depp told Variety in an interview at the time. He explained the Oscar winner was an embodiment of “perfect” beauty and talent before praising her wit and sense of humor as well. 

The Jeanne du Barry star quipped, “At the same time, she is very deep, very smart, very quick, very clever, very funny, and also has a very perverse sense of humor.”

Simultaneously, Jolie, 49, returned her co-star’s praises with her own, marking him as the nicest guy who was super fun to “hang out with” and a brilliant actor. “He’s just that friend you’re so happy to come to work and do scenes with. Plus, he’s such a brilliant actor,” the actress echoed later on. 

Sadly, fans never got to see more of the Hollywood duo in other projects, and with Jolie and Depp both manufacturing fewer movies now, chances are grim for a potential pair-up in the future too.