‘Outwardly He Looked Rude, But Inside He Was Like Chocolate’ Mumbai: In an exclusive conversation, Viveck Vaswani remembers fighting to cast Nana Patekar in Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman, his special bond with a young Shah Rukh Khan, and the warmth behind the actor’s intimidating screen image. Nana Patekar has played some of Hindi cinema’s most intimidating characters, but behind that famously stern exterior, there is another side to the actor that audiences rarely get to see. Film

The loss of a true friend; the vanishing of a rare stream of humanity Kolhapur: As the 1970s dawned, the romantic era of Rajesh Khanna was beginning to give way to a new cinematic mood. Then came Prakash Mehra’s Zanjeer in 1973, and Amitabh Bachchan emerged as the country’s quintessential “angry young man”. Young India was ready to wear Bachchan’s image around its neck like a talisman. At about the same time, away from the glare of stardom, an earthy Marathi actor named Nana

Mumbai: Maharashtra has lost an actor who never really belonged to the glittering world of cinema. Nana Patekar belonged to the street, the stage, the small rooms and crowded trains of Mumbai, to the Maharashtra that understood hardship without making a spectacle of it. He carried that world with him throughout his life. Even after becoming one of Indian cinema’s most recognisable actors, there was little polish about him. His was a face carved by experience, a voice sharpene

Some actors rely on glamour and good looks to make history; others create history purely through the strength of their craft. Nana Patekar belonged to that rare second category. From his humble beginnings in coastal Maharashtra, to becoming one of the most formidable performers in Indian cinema, his journey is a masterclass in grit, instinct, perseverance, and raw talent. Growing up in Murud, a young Nana grappled with deep-seated insecurities about his appearance. Living wit

Mumbai: There was always something cheerfully disarming about Vishwanath Gajannan Patekar, alias ‘Nana’ Patekar. For all his on-screen intense, raw and authoritative performances in over 100 films, he himself would easily puncture his awesome stardom with naughty jokes and naive smiles. Nearly two decades ago, when the actor agreed to sing a couple of jazzy rap numbers for “Horn OK Pleasss!” (2009), he displayed the same self-deprecating humour that was so quintessentially Na