Popular Bollywood producer dies

BBC NEWS | South Asia: "Veteran film-maker Ramanand Sagar, who produced one of India's most popular TV series, has died in the city of Mumbai (Bombay) aged 87 after an illness.

Sagar was noted for producing Ramayana, a TV series on the Hindu epic. Ramanand Sagar underwent abdominal surgery four months ago. He made and produced more than 25 films and more than a dozen television serials. But his television series Ramayana in the 1980s won him nationwide recognition.

First telecast in 1987 on India's state-run television, the 78-episode serial, based on the life of Lord Rama, one the most revered deities in Hinduism, often brought the country to a halt. Weddings were delayed, trains came to a halt and social events were re-scheduled so that people could watch the series, telecast every Sunday.

The high-pitched serial, with its garish production values, also had its critics who suggested Sagar's work helped fan Hindu nationalism in the country. According to Sagar's website, he wrote about 29 films before he established his own film production company in 1950. His firm made more than 25 films by 1984 of which 15 were box office successes, the website claims. "