Bollywood actor AK Hangal passed away on Sunday morning after a prolonged illness aggravated by a recent hip fracture, a family member said. Hangal was 97.

Hangal, admitted to the Asha Parekh Hospital in Mumbai last week, is quite critical.

"My father died around 9 a.m. The cause of death is mainly age-related and his lungs had also become weak and collapsed," Hangal's son Vijay, 76, told IANS.

"He died following lung and kidney failure after he suffered a hip fracture," the actor's physician Koulsoum Hossein told IANS.

"It is a great shock and loss to his family, admirers and the entire film fraternity," said a family member at the actor's Santacruz residence.

The veteran will be cremated Sunday afternoon at Vile Parle crematorium.

According to a hospital official, Hangal was on life-support systems for the past few days but did not respond to treatment.

He had been suffering from old age health problems for a long time.

Hangal, who had been in and out of hospital with a history of pulmonary tuberculosis, chronic kidney disease and hypertension, needed to be operated however the doctors felt he was unfit to go under the knife.

His wife passed away before and he is survived by his son, Vijay.

The actor was associated with the film industry since 1967 and worked in nearly 225 films. He is best known for his roles in 'Parichay', ‘Lagaan’ and 'Sholay'.

AK Hangal started his Hindi film career at the very late age of 50 with Basu Bhattacharya's 'Teesri Kasam' in 1966 and 'Shagird', and went on to play as the man of principles playing the on-screen father or uncle of the leading men/women in the films in the 70's 80's 90's or sometimes the quintessential meek and oppressed old man.

The actor made headlines in 2011 when it was revealed that he was struggling for livelihood as his source of income had dried up and there was hardly any money for food or medicine.

Following that, many people from the film industry, including actors Amitabh Bachchan and Aamir Khan, offered him financial support.

Hangal was last seen in a TV show, "Madhubala", in May.