Nana Patekar: Bollywood actor dies at 75 in Goa home

Nana Patekar, one of Indian cinema's best-known actors, died early Thursday, Oct. 8, at his home in Goa, a state in western India. He was 75. Dr. Shekhar Salkar, oncology chief at Manipal Hospital, told the news agency ANI that Patekar suffered a cardiac arrest and that "45 minutes of continuous CPR" failed to revive him. Variety and Mashable India put the time of death at about 5:20 a.m., while TheWrap reported 5:30 a.m. Salkar said friends and a caretaker were with him, not his family. He added that the body was taken to Goa Medical College for an autopsy. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Born Vishwanath Patekar in Maharashtra in 1951, he spent nearly five decades in Hindi- and Marathi-language films, starting with "Gaman" in 1978. His breakthrough came playing a crime lord in "Parinda" (1989), and "Krantiveer" (1994) won him India's National Film Award for best actor. He won three National Film Awards in all, and in 2013 he received the Padma Shri, India's fourth-highest civilian honor. Many fans knew him as Uday Shetty, the comic mob boss of the "Welcome" films. He was still working this year, including the film "O'Romeo" with Shahid Kapoor. He also served in the Territorial Army, leaving as a lieutenant colonel in 2013. [1] [2] [3] [4]

Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised his "intensity, individuality and unmistakable presence" as an actor, and co-stars Akshay Kumar and Riteish Deshmukh posted heartfelt tributes. His later years also brought controversy. Actor Tanushree Dutta accused him of harassing her on a 2008 film set, and her accusations helped start the #MeToo movement in Hindi cinema. Mumbai police filed a closure report in 2019, and Patekar always denied the allegations. He is survived by his wife and son. Mashable India identifies them as his estranged wife, Neelakanti Patekar, and their son Malhar, a filmmaker. [1] [2] [3] [4]