Nana Patekar Cremated with State Honours

Nana Patekar was cremated with full state honours at his Donje farmhouse in Pune district on Thursday, while his son, Malhar Patekar, cited delays in transporting his father’s mortal remains from Goa as the reason for conducting the last rites after sunset.

Key Takeaways

• Nana Patekar received full state honours and a three-gun salute at his farmhouse in Donje, Pune district.

• His son, Malhar Patekar, said delays in transporting the actor’s mortal remains from Goa led the family to conduct the cremation after sunset.

Nana Patekar receives full state honours at his funeral

Veteran actor Nana Patekar received full state honours at his funeral in Donje village in Maharashtra’s Pune district on Thursday. His son, Malhar Patekar, explained that the family conducted the cremation after sunset because transporting the actor’s mortal remains from Goa took longer than expected. He also pledged to carry forward his father’s social welfare initiatives and complete unfinished projects in education, healthcare and humanitarian service.

The funeral drew several personalities from the film industry and a large gathering of mourners. Actor Jackie Shroff, directors Anil Sharma and Anees Bazmee, and producer Firoz Nadiadwala attended the last rites at the farmhouse.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis paid his final respects to Patekar at Pune airport before leaving for Mumbai. Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited the actor’s farmhouse to offer his condolences. The state accorded Patekar a three-gun salute during the cremation.

Malhar explains why the cremation took place after sunset

Speaking to reporters after the last rites, Malhar said the family was in Goa when his father died. Bringing the mortal remains to the farmhouse in Donje took longer than anticipated, leaving the family with limited time to complete the funeral arrangements.

Customary practices generally discourage cremations after sunset. However, Malhar said the family decided against delaying the last rites further because considerable time had already passed since the actor’s death.

“We were in Goa, and his mortal remains were to be brought to the farmhouse in the village. We expected that we would arrive earlier but it took us some time. He passed away early in the morning so a lot of time had already passed and it was not advisable to keep the mortal remains for long. Hence, we had to do the cremation after the sunset,” he told the media.

Son vows to continue Nana Patekar’s social work

Malhar also spoke about his responsibility to preserve his father’s humanitarian legacy. He said Nana Patekar had encouraged people to unite for humanity and work towards improving lives across communities.

“People like him don’t go anywhere, they live forever through the work they are immortal. He always told us one thing that we should get together for humanity and work for the betterment of the world. He used to think on the global level. Our social work covered Maharashtra, pan-India including Jammu and Kashmir, we are doing all our social work there in the education and the health sector,” Malhar said.

He explained that his father had already delegated several responsibilities to people he trusted to carry out the work effectively. The actor had assigned duties to individuals who could continue the initiatives and deliver results.

“He had already passed on the responsibilities to every single person who deserved it. He had already delegated a lot of work to people who could do justice to it,” Malhar said.

According to his son, Nana Patekar also wanted to start some initiatives from scratch and dedicate his time to places where people needed support through social work.

Malhar promised to complete the unfinished projects and fulfil their shared commitment to public service.

“And, he wanted to start everything from scratch and he wanted to spend his life at a place which demanded something from him in terms of social work. I’ll make sure that whatever unfinished business is there, it gets completed. His dreams and my dreams collectively is to work for the people, I will ensure that it gets done,” he added.

Nana Patekar dies at 75 after cardiac arrest

Nana Patekar died in Goa at the age of 75 after suffering a cardiac arrest. Doctors attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and other resuscitation measures for around 45 minutes after he reached the hospital. However, they declared him dead on arrival.

His death prompted tributes from prominent personalities across the Indian film industry. Many remembered his distinctive screen presence, powerful performances and contributions beyond cinema.

Salman Khan, Ajay Devgn and Kamal Haasan mourn his death

Salman Khan expressed his grief through Instagram Stories with a brief message: “Nanaaaaa… Rest in peace bhau”.

Ajay Devgn also paid tribute to his late co-star on X, formerly Twitter. He shared a still from their film Apaharan and recalled Patekar’s ability to evoke strong emotions through his performances.

“Not many made us happy, sad and feel anger quite the way Nana did. His presence was powerful, his performances unforgettable, and his absence will now be deeply felt. Rest well, Nana. Om Shanti,” Devgn wrote.

Kamal Haasan shared a throwback photograph with Patekar and remembered him as an exceptional artist and a compassionate human being. He also highlighted the actor’s work supporting farmers in Maharashtra and his volunteer service during the Kargil War.

“Heartbreaking news of Nana Patekar Ji’s passing. An extraordinary artist and an even greater human being. The man was a force of nature, and he uplifted the lives of those around him. Beyond the screen, his work helping farmers in Maharashtra and his volunteer service during the Kargil War spoke volumes about his deep sense of duty. My deepest condolences to his family and his legions of fans,” Haasan wrote.

As colleagues and admirers mourn the veteran actor, Malhar’s pledge to continue his father’s social initiatives has brought renewed attention to Nana Patekar’s work in education, healthcare and humanitarian service.