Yousuf Kamal (Urdu: یوسف کمال; 29 May 1945 – 29 June 2023), known professionally as Shakeel Yousuf (Urdu: شکیل یوسف), was a Pakistani actor best known for his roles in the PTV drama series Uncle Urfi (1975), as Mehboob Ahmed in PTV's Aangan Terha (1984), and as Taimoor Ahmad in Ankahi (1982).
Life and career
Shakeel and his family migrated from India to Karachi, Pakistan, in 1952.[1] He was born Yusuf Kamal in Bhopal, British India.[2]
Shakeel received his primary education from an English-medium school in British India and in a French missionary school in India.[1]
Shakeel was well known for his roles in the PTV drama serial Uncle Urfi (1972), as Mehboob Ahmed in Aangan Terha (1984), and as Taimoor Ahmad in Ankahi (1982). He acted in a number of Pakistani films. He also played the part of the first Prime Minister of Pakistan, Liaqat Ali Khan, along with Christopher Lee, in a British biographical film about the life of founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah: Jamil Dehalvi's Jinnah (1998). He also appeared in the series Traffic for BBC Channel 4. He was known for his philanthropic activities.[1]
Shakeel died on 29 June 2023, at the age of 78.[3] He had been battling a prolonged illness, and news of his death had an emotional impact on admirers and fellow artists alike.[4]
Shakeel, in his 'one-man-show' 35-minutes-long stage performance in Karachi, in December 2012, says in the play, "War, war and more war only results in hunger and poverty."[2] "At one point, he reminisces about a time when people were full of love, honesty and concern for each other."[2] Many Pakistani TV and film celebrities including Fatima Surayya Bajia, Hasina Moin, Bushra Ansari and Anwar Maqsood Hameedi were in the audience to watch his performance.[2]
