MUMBAI - The "mother" of Indian cinema, Bollywood actress Reema Lagoo, has died at the age of 59.

She suffered a heart attack on Wednesday (May 17) night and died early on Thursday morning in a Mumbai hospital, BBC said.

It was a shock to the family as she had no health issues, son-in-law Vinay Waikul told Hindustan Times.

Lagoo was known for playing the role of a loving mother in many films and television dramas since the late 1970s.

Lagoo started her career in the late 1970s, and soon became famous for playing the mother of lead characters.

She appeared in dozens of hit Bollywood films like Hum Aapke Hain Koun (1994), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), and Maine Pyar Kiya (1989).

She last appeared as the mother of the male lead in Hindi romantic drama Naamkarann which premiered last September and is still airing.

She was filming for the show up to 7pm on Wednesday, the India Times said.

Co-star Viraf Patel wrote a touching tribute to Lagoo on Facebook.

"Your smile, your tenacity, your sense of humour, your love for life, your enthusiasm for acting even after doing it for over four decades shone through as much as you," he wrote, signing off as "your last (onscreen) son".

The prolific actress has played screen mum to Salman Khan, Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan.

She played Salman Khan's mother in his first film 28 years ago at the age of 31, BBC said.