Actor-screenwriter Kader Khan passed away after prolonged illness on December 31, his son Sarfaraz has confirmed. He was 81.

Khan was admitted to a hospital in Canada and his son confirmed that his last rites will be conducted in the country.

'My dad has left us. He passed away on December 31 at 6pm as per Canadian time due to prolonged illness. He slipped into coma in the afternoon. He was in the hospital for 16-17 weeks. The last rites will be performed in Canada. We have our entire family here and we live here, so we are doing it (here),' Khan's son Sarfaraz told PTI.

'We are thankful to everyone for their blessings and prayers,' he added.

Khan had developed breathing issues and the doctors had reportedly transferred him from a regular ventilator to a BiPAP ventilator.

According to reports, he was suffering from Progressive Supranuclear Palsy, a degenerative disease that causes loss of balance, difficulty in walking and dementia.

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. With Mehra, he worked on Jwalamukhi, Sharaabi, Lawaaris, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar.