Renowned Bollywood financier Raju Shah, also known as Rajubhai among those in the industry, breathed his last on Saturday night in Jammu and Kashmir’s Gulmarg. Raju, along with his wife Rita, and friends, had gone to Kashmir on a short vacation. Raju was known for financing films like Jab We Met, Golmaal, and Bol Bachchan.
Raju reportedly suffered a massive cardiac arrest and succumbed. ETimes revealed that his son and daughter-in-law reached Gulmarg on Sunday morning and were expected to return to Mumbai on Sunday night. Raju’s friend and filmmaker Govardhan Tanwani shared that Raju’s last rites will be performed Monday, January 24, in Mumbai.
Speaking of how it all happened, the filmmaker said Raju had gone to the bathroom in the hotel he and his fellow travellers were staying at and when he came out, he simply collapsed. He could not even reach the bed to sit. “He was rushed to the hospital but he was gone by then. They all are coming back. Raju Shah’s son, daughter and son-in-law had reached Gulmarg this morning,” he said.
Tanwani added that he was tested positive for COVID-19 and had to skip the holiday. When asked what prompted Raju and his friends to head for the holiday, Tanwani replied, “Ab jo likha tha, woh hona hi tha. Aur main kya bolun? (Whatever was written, had to happen, what else can I say).” Raju had taken the trip with Jayantilal Vershi Gada, and Pravinbhai Nanjibhai Shah along with their spouses.
The report added that Raju’s son, Yash, is in a terrible state. “I was speaking to dad just 45 minutes before it was all over,” Yash said.
Raju was 63 and backed a number of movies including Amitabh Bachchan’s Sarkar, Abhishek Bachchan and Ajay Devgn’s Bol Bachchan and Rohit Shetty’s directorial film Golmaal. Raju also reportedly financed all projects under the Ashtavinayak films banner and collaborated with producers such as Boney Kapoor, Harry Baweja and Indra Kumar on a few films.
