MUMBAI - He was gracious and loving till the end, says Feroz Khan’s brother Akbar. He added that they had been preparing themselves for his death for quite a few months.

‘For three months now we’ve been watching him slowly sink. We prayed to either relieve him from pain, or life,’ Akbar told IANS.

Feroz Khan died Sunday at his farmhouse in Bangalore after a year-long battle with cancer. He was 69. The entire family was gathered in Bangalore for the funeral, which took place Monday.

‘The entire family was here towards his end literally feeding him out of our hands,’ said the grief-stricken sibling. ‘And he enjoyed his glass of wine in the evenings with us till the end. He was a very loving friend and bhai (brother).

‘We buried him next to our mother. It’s unfortunate that we couldn’t bring him back to Mumbai for so many of his friends and well-wishers to see him for the last time. But his last wish was to lie eternally next to our mother in our home town near Bangalore. And we had to fulfil that wish.’

Akbar, who recently made the historical epic ‘Taj Mahal - An Eternal Love Story’, says that contrary to his flamboyant image, Feroz Khan was a sensitive person.

‘He was much loved by all his friends and colleagues. Contrary to his flamboyant image, he was a very gentle sensitive soul. Even in his frail condition towards the end he’d get up from his chair to greet each one of us in the family no matter how old or young. He was a friend first, then a father-figure,’ said Akbar.

‘He was fearless even when faced with death. He was the apple of our mother’s eyes. All of us five brothers and two sisters looked up to him. We’ve lost a father-figure. But he’s relieved of his pain. But he was fearless to the end. He didn’t even fear death. He’ll always be with us.’