Veteran actor Nana Patekar dies at 75

• Veteran actor Nana Patekar passed away in Goa on October 8. He was 75. 

• Vishwanath Patekar, popularly known by his stage name Nana Patekar, was born on January 1, 1951 in Murud-Janjira in Raigad district of Maharashtra.

• He broke out in theatre with Vijaya Mehta’s ‘Hamidabai Chi Kothi’ that led to more acclaimed performances on stage. 

• The big screen debut came in 1978 with Muzaffar Ali’s ‘Gaman’, which had Smita Patil and Farookh Sheikh in lead roles. 

• It led to movies such as ‘Sinhaasan’, ‘Giddh’, ‘Aaj Ki Awaz’, ‘Ankush’ and ‘Pratighaat’.

• In 1988 came Mira Nair’s 1988 film ‘Salaam Bombay!’, which saw him playing a local thug and drug dealer. The role in the Oscar-nominated film brought him instant notice and propelled him into the big league of critically acclaimed actors.

• In 1990, Vidhu Vinod Chopra cast him as Anna, the central villain in his acclaimed ‘Parinda’. The role won him his first National Award for Best Supporting Actor. 

• He won his second National Film Award, this time as lead actor, for his role in 1994 hit ‘Krantiveer’. 

• His third National award was for the 1996 film ‘Agnisakshi’.

• He portrayed a wide variety of of roles in films like Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Khamoshi: The Musical’, Gulzar’s ‘Hu Tu Tu’, Prakash Jha’s ‘Apaharan’ and ‘Rajneeti’, Marathi film ‘Natsamrat’, the comedic ‘Welcome’ and ‘Welcome Back’, Tamil hit ‘Kaala’, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Khamoshi: The Musical’, Gulzar’s ‘Hu Tu Tu’ and Ram Gopal Varma’s ‘Bhoot’.

• Patekar took a break at the peak of his career to direct ‘Prahaar: The Final Attack’, where he played a Maratha Light Infantry officer. 

• Patekar was honoured with the Padma Shri in 2013.

• In 2018, he hit the headlines following ‘Me Too’ allegations of sexual harassment. An FIR was registered and the case filed in a local court. It was closed due to insufficient evidence.