Nana Patekar, the three-time National Award-winning actor, died in Goa on October 8 after a cardiac arrest. He was 75.
His son Malhar Patekar confirmed the news. Nana was found unconscious at his Dona Paula residence and rushed to Manipal Hospital, where doctors tried for about 45 minutes to revive him. He was declared dead around 5:20 am; doctors cited a heart attack as the cause of death.
A promise to finish one line
His last known conversation about work came two days before. Subhash Kale, co-producer of the crime thriller The Confession, told ANI that only one line of dubbing remained. Nana said he would come to Mumbai and complete it.
“I’ll come tomorrow, and we’ll do that one line,” Kale recalled Nana saying.
Kale described their studio routine: whenever Nana reached Mumbai, he would call him first. They would sit, joke and sing songs before getting to work. “He was just incredible,” Kale added.
The record of the day
- Died: October 8, in Goa, at 75
- Cause: cardiac arrest; doctors cited a heart attack
- Pending work: one line of dubbing for The Confession
- Tributes: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several chief ministers
Kale learned the news around 7:30 in the morning and called Malhar to confirm it. The confirmation left him shaken.
Why it matters
The death has drawn tributes from cinema and public life, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several chief ministers. Nana Patekar was regarded as one of the finest actors in Indian cinema history, a three-time National Award winner whose face and voice carried decades of Hindi film memory.
The Confession, also known as The Confession of Mary, was set to release. It now becomes his final screen appearance, one line short of complete. The producers have not yet said how the pending dubbing will be handled.
What happens next
For the moment, the team is focused on the loss rather than the logistics. Kale said he was unable to speak and was leaving for Goa, where the actor died.
That one unfinished line is a small but telling detail: even at 75, Nana Patekar was still working, still promising to turn up, and still part of a film that was about to reach its audience.
Source: Hindustan Times