Veteran actor Nana Patekar died on October 8 after a cardiac arrest at his residence in Goa. He was 75. The news has sent grief through Bollywood and political circles, with tributes remembering an actor whose presence on screen felt entirely his own.
Patekar was rushed to Manipal Hospital, where doctors attempted to revive him with cardiac massage for 45 minutes, but he could not be saved. He is survived by his wife, Neelkanti Patekar, and son, Malhar Patekar.
The loss reached Anupam Kher in Washington, DC, just after he finished his play Jaane Pehchane Anjaane. In an emotional video message, Kher said he had taken his curtain call and walked into the wings when his director told him that Nana was no more. He was left trying to pose for photographs, smile and absorb the news all at once.
A friendship built on scolding and songs
Kher described a bond that was warm, direct and often theatrical. Whenever the two met, he said, Nana would pretend to be angry with him — and Kher would sing to make him happy.
“Some people, we think, will never go, and Nana was one of them,” Kher said. “He was larger than life. He had the largest heart in the world.”
The actor also remembered Nana’s famous temper as something gentler than it looked. “Nana’s anger was all kindness,” he said, adding that there was a sense of belonging even in his scolding.
Why the loss feels so big
Kher called Nana one of the greatest actors and human beings in Indian cinema. He recalled that Nana would sometimes call him out of the blue only to praise a performance. The two had worked together in several films and shared years of off-screen history.
In the caption of his tribute, Kher imagined how Nana would have reacted to the flood of memorials. Knowing him, Kher wrote, he could almost hear him dismissing the idea: “Oh, so what? What’s the big deal if someone dies? Everyone dies!”
Still, Kher admitted the grief was hard to process. “It’s shocking, unreal and real at the same time,” he said. “He was just 75 and a healthy, strong 75-year-old man.”
Key details at a glance
- Who: Veteran actor Nana Patekar
- Age: 75
- Cause: Cardiac arrest at his Goa residence
- Hospital: Manipal Hospital, where doctors attempted cardiac massage for 45 minutes
- Survived by: Wife Neelkanti Patekar and son Malhar Patekar
Another friend lost
Kher has now mourned two close friends in recent years. Before Nana, he lost actor-director Satish Kaushik, who died on March 9, 2023, at age 66 following a heart attack.
Kher’s farewell doubled as a gentle instruction for fans. He said whenever he misses Nana, he will watch his films — and today he simply wishes he could hug his friend one more time.
Source: Hindustan Times
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