VETERAN actor Nana Patekar, known for his versatility and powerful screen presence across films such as“Salaam Bombay!”,“Khamoshi” and “Welcome”, passed away at his Goa residence in the early hours of Thursday. He was 76. Patekar is suspected to have suffered a heart attack, according to sources. The actor was brought to a private hospital after he was found unconscious at his apartment in Dona Paula, near Panaji, Dr Shekhar Salkar, a senior doctor at the medical facility said. Despite being administered CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) for 45 minutes, Patekar could not be revived and was declared dead at 5.10 am, he said. A medico-legal case has been registered in this connection, and a postmortem was conducted, he added. As per information provided by a friend of Patekar to the hospital doctors, the actor had messaged him around 3.30 am that he was not feeling well. “The friend saw the message around 4 am and rushed to the apartment of Patekar, who was living with a caretaker,” Salkar said. The caretaker rushed to the private hospital, from where an ambulance was sent to his house. “The treatment started in the ambulance itself,” Salkar said. Patekar’s residence is about 5 minutes away from the hospital.

 

The doctors tried to revive him after being brought to the hospital, but he was declared dead at 5.10 am. The body has been sent to Goa Medical College and Hospital, Bambolim, where the postmortem would be conducted to ascertain the exact cause of death, Salkar said. The actor’s sudden death has shocked his fans and industry colleagues as he seemed to be in good health as he attended an event here. Known for his intensity and distinct style of dialogue delivery, Patekar graduated from small roles to become one of the most versatile leading men of his era. He was born as Vishwanath Patekar into a Marathi family in Murud-Janjira in Raigad district. The actor often credited his father for encouraging his talent as a performer. Patekar was known for his roles in several Hindi and Marathi films. His notable Hindi movies include “Parinda”, “Prahaar: The Final Act”, “Tirangaa”, “Krantiveer” and “Khamoshi: The Musical”. Patekar was a recipient of three National Film Awards, several Filmfare Awards, the Maharashtra State Film Award and Filmfare Awards Marathi. He had also received Padma Shri, the country’s fourth-highest civilian honour.