For fans who know Shivaji Satam as the unflappable ACP Pradyuman from CID, his tribute to Nana Patekar is a different side of the actor: grateful, candid and still processing the loss of a friend of nearly 40 years. Speaking at the condolence gathering Athvanitle Nana at P.L. Deshpande Maharashtra Kala Academy in Prabhadevi, Mumbai, Satam recalled the ways Patekar shaped his career and stood by him in private crisis.
The friend who pulled him into Hindi films
Satam said he was not ready to play a police officer in his first Hindi film, Yashwant. The producer called him because Patekar had recommended his name. When Satam refused, the producer called Patekar, who convinced him in his own way. As Satam put it, after saying no several times, he agreed.
Two hours, a producer and a pay correction
After the shoot, Patekar asked what Satam had been paid. When he heard the amount, he was upset. Satam had told him not to question the producers, but Patekar did it anyway. He made the producers stand for two hours, “just like teachers used to make us stand in school,” Satam said, and argued on behalf of his friend.
The moment captures why colleagues remember Patekar as fiercely protective. For Satam, it was also a lesson in not settling too quietly.
The schedule change that made a difficult year manageable
Satam’s wife was diagnosed with cancer while he was shooting Ghulam-E-Musthafa. He told Patekar he could not continue with the film. Instead of accepting that, Patekar spoke to director Partho Ghosh and the team. The next day, Satam was told to come at 12 noon and would be allowed to leave by 8 pm.
Satam described the gesture in the plainest terms he could: Patekar did more for him than “even my own brother might have.”
Why the tribute matters
Patekar died on October 8 at the age of 75 after a cardiac arrest at his Goa residence. The autopsy said the cause was a heart attack, with a blood clot blocking the left main coronary artery. At the condolence meet, the stories were not about stardom. They were about the off-camera ways Patekar used his influence: getting a friend cast, arguing over money, and reworking a set’s hours so a colleague could go home to a sick spouse.
- Career door: Patekar’s recommendation led to Satam’s first Hindi film, Yashwant, and he persuaded him to take the role.
- Pay standoff: Patekar confronted the producers for two hours after learning Satam’s fee.
- Family first: During Satam’s wife’s cancer treatment, Patekar helped arrange a 12 noon to 8 pm schedule on Ghulam-E-Musthafa.
For celebrity-watchers, that is the context behind the pictures: a tribute is not only about loss, but about the visible markers of a private friendship.
Source: Hindustan Times
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