Mahesh Manjrekar has shared a deeply affecting memory of Nana Patekar, revealing that the veteran actor had signed a Rajkumar Hirani film shortly before his passing, a disclosure that has instantly given fans one more reason to reflect on the remarkable work he still had ahead of him.
What has made the moment especially emotional is the image it leaves behind: a powerhouse performer like Nana preparing to collaborate with one of Hindi cinema’s most distinctive filmmakers. In a single quote, Manjrekar captured both the excitement of that possibility and the sadness now attached to it.
Mahesh Manjrekar’s Emotional Revelation
Speaking about Nana, Mahesh Manjrekar said, “Every time he signed a film, he used to call me. The last thing he told me was that he was doing a Raju [Rajkumar] Hirani film. I feel so sad that the movie [will] never [get] made. Both of them would have been magic together.”
The remark lands with particular force because it hints at a creative meeting audiences never even knew was on the cards. Hirani’s warm, humane storytelling and Nana’s volatile, deeply felt screen presence could have produced one of those rare pairings that instantly sparks curiosity across generations of moviegoers.
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Nana died on October 8, 2026, at the age of 75. His death prompted tributes from across the film industry, with colleagues remembering not just the actor’s formidable talent but also the unpredictability, warmth and emotional honesty that defined him off screen.
A Glimpse Into Nana’s Off Screen Personality
That mix of intensity and tenderness came through vividly in one of Manjrekar’s memories from the set of Natsamrat, the 2016 Marathi classic that remains one of Nana’s most celebrated performances. Recalling the episode, he said, “Nana had this habit of watching the scenes on the monitor. So, on the first day of the shoot, while watching a scene on the monitor, he couldn’t hear the sound. Nana being Nana, he scolded the sound recordist, leaving him nervous and shit-scared, which made the cameraman nervous as well. What happens when a man is scared? He makes more mistakes, which is exactly what happened that day. So, the next morning, I told Nana that we needed to change the sound recordist and the cameraman. He asked why, saying that they were good. I told him, ‘They are scared and they can’t work under pressure.’ So, Nana went and hugged both of them, abused them a little bit, and that was it. It was smooth sailing after that. He was like a child.”
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Manjrekar also shared one final memory from just hours before the news reached him. He said, “I came to London recently, and on Wednesday night, I was scrolling through Instagram and saw him reviewing a book he had read. I wondered why he was looking pale. I told my wife, ‘I will call him first thing tomorrow morning’. I went to sleep with that thought, and at 3 am [London time], I got a call that he was no more. That video felt like him saying goodbye to me before he went.”
Nana Patekar’s Recent And Upcoming Work
That sense of unfinished momentum also reflects in Nana’s slate from the last few years. His recent work included Ole Aale in 2024 and Housefull 5 in 2025, while 2026 titles linked to him included Paatki and Bandkhor. He was also attached to Shakti Shalini, making Manjrekar’s revelation about the Rajkumar Hirani film all the more poignant in hindsight.
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