It was earlier today that actor Kavi Kumar Azad or as he is known to fans, Dr. Hansraj Haathi from Tarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashma was rushed to the hospital as he wasn’t feeling well. Sadly, the actor passed away even before making it to the hospital. The doctors, however, revealed that a cardiac arrest was the cause for the actor’s untimely demise.

Confirming the sad news, the director of the sitcom, Asit Kumarr Modi said:

We are very sad to inform loss of our senior actor Kavi Kumar Azad. He was playing the character of Dr Hathi in Taarak Mehta Ka Oolta Chashma. We lost him to a massive cardiac arrest today morning. He was an amazing actor and a very positive person. He truly Loved the show and always came for the shoot even if he was not feeling well. He called today morning that he is not well and will not be able to come for shoot. And later we got the news that he passed away. We are all too numb to say anything,” Asit Kumarr Modi said in a statement.

Kavi has been one of the recurring cast members on the show for the past 8 years or so and was a favourite among fans too.

A source close to the show’s unit also revealed that Azad wasn’t well for the past few days:

He spoke to Asit on phone that he won’t be coming for the shoot today as he was unwell. He has been unwell for the last few days but still reporting for work.We’re saddened by the passing away of someone who brought a smile on so many faces. R.I.P, Kavi Kumar.