He was critically acclaimed for his performances in many unconventional roles such as a victimized tribal in "Aakrosh" (1980); Jimmy's manager in "Disco Dancer" (1982); a police inspector in "Ardh Satya" (1982), for which he got the National Film Award for Best Actor; a humble husband in "Seepeeyan" (1984), Vinod's uncle in Zamana the leader of a cell of Sikh militants in "Maachis" (1996); as a tough cop again in the commercial film "Gupt" in 1997; and as the courageous father of a martyred soldier in "Dhoop" (2003).