Puri played some of most remembered villainous roles in Vidhaata (1982), Shakti (1982), Hero (1983), Meri Jung (1985), Nagina (1986), Mr. India (1987), Shahenshah (1988), Ram Lakhan (1989), Tridev (1990), Ghayal (1990), Saudagar (1991), Thalapathi (1991), Tahalka (1992), Damini (1993), Karan Arjun (1995), Kaalapani (1996), Jeet (1996), Koyla (1997), Baadshah (1999), Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001), and Nayak: The Real Hero (2001).

Puri's performance of the main antagonist Mogambo from Shekhar Kapur's Mr. India (1987) is considered as one of greatest villains of all time in Indian cinema.

Some of his notable positive roles are Phool Aur Kaante (1991), Gardish (1993), Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995), Ghatak (1996), Diljale (1996) Pardes (1997), Virasat (1997), China Gate (1998), Badal (2000), Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai (2001), Mujhse Shaadi Karogi (2004) and Hulchul (2004).

To foreign audiences, he is best known as Mola Ram in the Steven Spielberg and George Lucas' Hollywood film Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) and in Richard Attenborough's Gandhi (1982) as Dada Abdulla Hajee Adab, President of the Natal Indian Congress.

Amrish Lal Puri was born in a Punjabi Hindu family in Nawanshahr, Punjab, to Lala Nihal Chand and Ved Kaur.

He however managed to land a stable job with the Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC), a government organization, and indulged his hobby of acting by becoming part of an amateur natak mandali or stage group.

His baldness gave him the flexibility to experiment with different looks as a villain in subsequent movies, and few are aware that in every film thereafter, Puri was wearing a wig.

In villainous roles, Puri is best remembered as "Mogambo" in Mr. India, "Jagavar" in Vidhaata, "Thakral" in Meri Jung, "Bhujang" in Tridev, "Balwant Rai" in Ghayal, Barrister Chadda in Damini and "Thakur Durjan Singh" in Karan Arjun.

Some of his notable positive roles are Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Phool Aur Kaante, Gardish, Pardes, Virasat, Ghatak, Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai, China Gate.

Puri was suffering from myelodysplastic syndrome, a rare kind of blood cancer, and had undergone brain surgery for his condition after he was admitted to the Hinduja Hospital on 27 December 2004.

His condition required frequent removal of the blood accumulated in the cerebral region of the brain and after some time he slipped into a coma.

Commemorating his 87th birthday, Google carried his picture and the accompanying text read as, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again—and you might end up like Indian film actor Amrish Puri, who overcame an early setback on the way to fulfilling his big screen dreams.