Mumbai: Veteran filmmaker GP Sippy passed away in Mumbai on Tuesday night after prolonged illness. He was cremated in Mumbai earlier on Wednesday.

Though in his hay days GP Sippy made stars out of unknown people, most of them were too busy to take time off for his funeral in Mumbai.

In his 40 year film career, he had produced blockbuster films such as Sholay, Seeta Aur Geeta, Sagar, Bhramachari and Shaan to name a few.

Though he started producing films in 1951 with Sazaa, his career got a boost when his son Ramesh Sippy made Sholay in 1975, which turned out to be the biggest, hit in his and his son’s career.

He also served as the Chairman of the Film and TV producers’ guild of India as many as four times. Last year GP sippy was in the news when Ram Gopal Verma claimed to have bought the rights of sholay to make his version of the film, Ram Gopal Verma kii Aag. In early 60s GP Sippy tried his hand in direction but did not succeed. However, later went ahead to become one of the biggest producers in Hindi cinema.

His last film was in 1997, Saif Ali Khan starrer Hamesha, after which he did not produce any film due to health related issues.

His contribution to Hindi cinema will never be forgotten as he has produced some of the best films and launched some of the biggest names in Bollywood.