The final journey from Goa to Pune
Nana Patekar was cremated with full state honours in Pune on Thursday night, hours after his death at 75. The ceremony included a 3-gun salute, a formal mark of respect for a performer whose career ran through both Hindi and Marathi cinema.
Before the cremation, his mortal remains were brought to his farmhouse in Pune. Fans paid their respects with garlands and floral tributes. Members of the film community and political leaders were present; Jackie Shroff, Anil Sharma, Anees Bazmee and Firoz Nadiadwala attended the last rites, while Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited the farmhouse to offer condolences.
Why the family acted the same day
The timing of the funeral drew attention because several in the film fraternity had wanted to attend. His son, Malhar Patekar, offered a plain explanation in a video carried by ANI. Since the actor died in the early hours of Thursday morning, he said, “a significant amount of time had already passed,” and the family decided to proceed that day rather than wait.
That decision is part of the record now. It answers a practical question: a death early in the morning, followed by the movement of remains, public tributes and a state ceremony, leaves a family managing both grief and logistics. Malhar Patekar’s statement was measured and direct, which is its own kind of dignity.
The medical timeline
Patekar reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest at his residence in Goa. According to doctors at Manipal Hospital, CPR was administered for around 45 minutes before he was pronounced dead. A post-mortem examination was ordered to establish the exact cause of death.
That formal step means the official record remains open even after the cremation. For an actor whose public image was built on restraint and controlled explosion, the quiet procedural detail is fitting.
A filmography of pressure and consequence
Patekar leaves behind a legacy spanning decades. The films mentioned most in the immediate tributes were:
- Parinda
- Krantiveer
- Ab Tak Chhappan
- Natsamrat
These are not interchangeable titles. Parinda made the underworld feel like a moral wound; Krantiveer turned anger into a public argument; Ab Tak Chhappan followed a cop’s extrajudicial logic; Natsamrat carried a stage tragedy into Marathi cinema. Together they show a performer who could hold a close-up with very little movement and still make the frame tremble.
For our readers, the significance is double. Hindi cinema has lost one of its last genuinely unpredictable leading men from the 1980s and 1990s, and Marathi cinema has lost a bridge to its theatrical roots. The state honour conferred in Pune was not just for a film star; it was for a cultural memory.
Source: The Times of India
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