The creative void in the entertainment medium is getting wider with each passing day with the passing away of the old guard. After Moin Akhtar, it is now renowned film and TV actor Latif Charlie who passed away on July 19 at the age of 75.

Latif Charlie had worked in many films and was one of director Pervez Malik’s pet actors. He had to his credit successful box office and commercial films such as Salgirah, Doraha, and more recently Jamil Dehlavi’s Jinnah and Aslam Natha’s Naya Daur. He also received an award for his acting in Doraha, in which he played the part of a musician alongside Waheed Murad.

After getting married to Masooma Shah, one of the first three women who started work on PTV in its formative years (the other two being Zeenat Yasmeen, the mother of fashion supermodel Iraj Manzoor, and Ghazala Yasmeen), he also began working on television and partook in the hugely popular drama serials, Fatima Surraiya Bajiya’s Shama, Mera Naam Mangu and Tabeer (based on Partition and produced by Qasim Jalali), being just three of them. He also won the coveted Nigar Award in 1977 for his role in Shama.

Latif Charlie was the son of Noor Mohammad Charlie, who himself was a known film actor of the Indian film industry. Latif Charlie also headed Charlie Arts that has to its credit the holding the first-ever Vital Signs’ concert in Karachi.

As the first family of entertainment, Latif leaves a strong legacy behind: famous actor/musician Khaled Anam is his son-in-law by marriage to Tehmina Khaled, a fashion/entertainment journalist-turned-choreographer/event planner and his two sons of whom Dino who is a popular VJ/RJ and Mustafa is making inroads as a fashion model.