When Vinod Khanna made headlines for his 'personal' life

New Delhi: Legendary actor Vinod Khanna passed away this morning at a Mumbai hospital after battling a prolonged illness. The superstar actor and politician was 70-year-old.

"He (Vinod Khanna) passed away at 11.20 AM. It's a sad moment for us... We request you all (media) for privacy," the actor's brother Pramod Khanna told PTI. The thespian had worked in several Hindi films and has a huge filmography to his credit.

Khanna was the sitting MP from Gurdaspur. The classic actor started his career in Sunil Dutt's 'Man Ka Meet' which released in 1968. He went to act in several films as a villain but it was 'Hum Tum Aur Woh' in 1971 and 'Mere Apne' in the same year which won him accolades and prominence.

Soon Khanna became the nation's heartthrob and in no time had a huge fan following. His handsome and dashing looks had girls falling for the macho man. Khanna broke a million hearts and got married to Geetanjali in 1971. He has two sons from that marriage—Rahul and Akshaye Khanna—both are in the film business.

READ: A timeline of Vinod Khanna's inspiring life

However, there came a phase in his life when he turned into a spiritual seeker rather than being an artiste. Khanna looked up to his guru Rajneesh Osho and was reportedly one of his favourite disciples. This was somewhere in 1975 when his craze had just begun. But in the early 1980s, when Khanna had become a huge Bollywood star, he decided to denounce his career, showbiz—all the limelight and surrender his soul to his guru.

Shocking everyone, Khanna left the industry to be with Osho. He went to the US, at Rajneeshpuram—performing the duties of a true disciple for about five long years. He even worked at Osho's garden. However, his family stayed back in India and soon reports of turmoil in his married life hit the headlines back home.

Soon, the couple headed for divorce. It was the same time when Khanna returned to the country and made a comeback in Hindi films. Now, the 90s had ushered in and the era had changed.

In 1990, Khanna announced his marriage with Kavita with whom he has two kids—son Sakshi and daughter Shraddha.

His family has been supportive of him in all these years and was by his side during tough times.

Vinod Khanna was admitted to Sir H.N. Reliance Foundation Hospital and Research Center in Girgaon for a few weeks before succumbing to cancer, reportedly. His wife Kavita and kids were by his side during his last moments.