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Veteran Indian actor Nana Patekar has died at the age of 75 in Goa, his son Malhar told the BBC.
Patekar was found unconscious at his home in the early hours of Thursday and taken to hospital. “Despite 45 minutes of continuous CPR, he could not be revived,” Dr Shekhar Salkar of Manipal Hospital in Goa told ANI.
A career spanning film and theatre
Patekar made his film debut in 1978 with Gaman, initially appearing in smaller roles. His performance as the volatile gangster Anna in the 1989 film Parinda brought him national recognition and earned him a National Film Award and a Filmfare Award.
He went on to play a wide range of characters, including Major Chauhan in Prahaar, a film he also directed; villain Majid Khan in Angaar; and the patriotic firebrand in Tirangaa. His role as Pratap Narayan Tilak in Krantiveer won him the National Film Award for best actor.
Patekar also received acclaim for Khamoshi, in which he played a man who could neither hear nor speak, and for his portrayal of a politician in Prakash Jha’s 2010 film Rajneeti.
His three National Film Awards were for Parinda, Krantiveer and Agni Sakshi. Alongside his screen career, Patekar worked extensively in Marathi and Hindi theatre, appearing in plays including Purush and Hamidabai Chi Kothi.
Activism and controversy
Patekar was known for speaking out against government policies, with farmers’ issues among his main concerns. In 2015, he and actor Makarand Anaspure founded the Naam Foundation, which has worked on farmer welfare, water conservation and rural infrastructure in Maharashtra.
In 2018, actor Tanushree Dutta accused Patekar of sexual harassment over an alleged incident on a film set a decade earlier. Patekar denied the allegations. Police said in 2019 that they had not found sufficient evidence against him, and he was cleared of the charges.
