Dara Singh | Bollywood actor, 84

Bollywood action hero Dara Singh, 84, died at his Mumbai home Thursday, days after suffering a heart attack.

Indian film stars and politicians alike issued messages of praise and condolences.

Mr. Singh was born in 1928 in the Punjabi district of Amritsar and spent his youth competing in professional freestyle-wrestling tournaments.

In the 1950s, he began working in Bollywood films and appeared in dozens for which he did his own stunts.

He was a member of India's upper house of Parliament for the Hindu nationalist opposition, the Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP, from 2003 to 2009.

He had been ailing in recent years. He is survived by his wife, three sons, and three daughters. - AP