Veteran Indian actor Nana Patekar passes away

Hospital sources confirmed that the celebrated actor was rushed to the facility on Thursday morning after his health deteriorated rapidly. Attending doctors performed CPR for nearly 45 minutes in an attempt to revive him. However, all efforts failed, and he was pronounced dead at 5:20 AM.  

Over his storied acting career, Nana Patekar earned immense acclaim for his versatile roles and commanding dialogue delivery. A three-time National Film Award winner, he established his cinematic legacy through defining performances in hit films such as Natsamrat, Wajood, Parinda, Ab Tak Chhappan, and Yashwant.

Patekar made his Bollywood debut in 1978 with the film Gaman. In the early 2000s, his roles in Shakti: The Power (2002), Ab Tak Chhappan (2004), Apaharan (2005), and Taxi No. 9211 (2006) earned widespread critical praise.

He gained popularity among commercial cinema audiences portraying the iconic gangster "Uday Shetty" in the comedy hit Welcome (2007) and its sequel Welcome Back (2015).

Additionally, his performance in the political thriller Raajneeti (2010) earned him his fifth Filmfare Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. He later won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor for his performance in the Marathi hit Natsamrat (2016), and was recently seen in the comedy-thriller Housefull 5.

Beyond acting, the versatile artist proved his talent in music, winning praise as a playback singer for tracks in Yashwant (1997), Wajood (1998), and Aanch (2003).