Coming to India in 1949, Hangal became active with the Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) along with stalwarts like Balraj Sahni, Kaifi Azmi etc. He acted in many plays from 1949-1965 and made his big screen debut with 'Teesri Kasam' in 1966. Hangal is seen with Ashok Kumar and Utpal Dutt in a still from 'Shaukeen'.Though in films, he was always noted for supporting roles, he was known to research for the role and play it to perfection. In an interview, he revealed that, for his role 'Rahim Chacha or Imaam Sahab' in Sholay, he had learnt Islamic hymns and tried to perfect the body language of a Muslim priest.AK Hangal had spent years in a Karachi jail before migrating to India in 1949. Growing up in Sialkot, he had joined the mass protest against Jallianwala Bagh massacre in North West Frontier Province (currently Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Pakistan).Hangal remained a Marxist lifelong and renewed his membership of Communist Party of India, a year before he died. In 1993 he received the ire of Shiv Sena, when he was invited by the Pakistani consulate in Mumbai. He had applied for a visa to visit his birthplace. Bal Thackarey went on to call the actor a traitor and the party called for his boycott. Hangal's effigies were burn and for two years he was out of work.The actor remained in poverty at the end of his life. His son Vijay, a retired photographer also struggled to support the family. Many celebrities including Aamir Khan and Salman reportedly came to help him. Amitabh Bachchan and Karan Johar too, according to son Vijay, had reached out to the ailing actor.Hangal was hospitalised in August 2012 with a fractured thigh bone and soon he was put on life support. He died on 26th August, 2012. While most of the A-lister of Bollywood skipped his funeral, they made a point to condole his demise through tweets.
