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Nana Patekar once turned down Raj Kapoor's film offer: 'I could not tell him if I disagreed'
Nana Patekar once turned down Raj Kapoor's film offer: 'I could not tell him if I disagreed'
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Mumbai, Raj Kapoor once offered a role to Nana Patekar but the actor turned it down.
In an interview with PTI in December 2024, Patekar recounted the story behind his decision to say no to the legendary actor-filmmaker, whose son Rishi Kapoor later became his close friend.
"I was shooting at RK Studios when Raj Kapoor ji asked me, 'Will you work in my film?' I thought, 'Raj Kapoor is asking me! He was my father's hero.' But I said no.
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"I told him, 'In my house, you are everyone's favourite hero, including my mother and father. If we ever have a difference of opinion over a scene, I would not be able to tell you anything. And if I did, I would feel that I was disrespecting you. That is why I can't work with you'," Nana said recalling the conversation.
The actor, who died on Thursday at the age of 76, said he had the same dilemma when other stalwarts of Indian cinema Dev Anand and V Shantaram approached him.
"I said the same thing to Dev Anand sahab as well. Once, V Shantaram also asked me, and I told him, 'I don't see you as a common man or an ordinary director. You are very big for me, and I can't imagine working with you'," he said.
Patekar, who delivered intense and raw performances in many critical hits such as "Parinda", "Krantiveer", "Yeshwant", "Ab Tak Chhappan" and "Agni Sakshi", also recalled his "beautiful" friendship with Rishi Kapoor, who passed away in April 2020.
The two actors starred together in the 1995 movie "Hum Dono", in which they played estranged brothers.
In real life, Patekar and Rishi Kapoor shared a frank rapport.
The actor revealed that Rishi Kapoor would often message him, saying he was coming over for a couple of drinks and a meal.
"He would say, 'Hey Nana, what are you doing this evening? I'll come over. We'll make keema and pav. What do you have at your place? I'll bring the liquor myself.' When he would come, I would show him my collection of liquor."
"We used to message each other regularly, and I still have our messages from the time he was unwell. He once messaged me, 'Yaar Nana, this is such a terrible illness. It has kept me stuck for so long.' I told him to visit my place."
Patekar said he shared close friendships with Mithun Chakraborty, Jackie Shroff and Danny Denzongpa.
During the interview, the actor also remembered how Marathi actor Ashok Saraf helped him financially in the late 1970s and 1980s when he was struggling as an artist.
He said Saraf, who was a big name in Marathi theatre and cinema at the time, was like an elder brother to him.
"There was a time when we were struggling and used to get ₹50 for a show, so we would play cards. He was already a star and would get ₹250 for a show. He would knowingly lose ₹10-15 to me while playing cards. I knew he was losing on purpose, but I would take the money because I needed it. He helped me a lot.
"One day, I was in desperate need of money. He came early in the morning, knocked on my window and handed me a cheque. He said, 'Don't open the door. There is ₹15,000 in the bank. Put whatever amount you need on the cheque.' This was in 1979. I wrote ₹3,000 on the cheque and took the money."
The actor said they later worked in a Marathi film together, "Savitri", in which he played the villain.
"I got paid in cash for the film and returned his money. He then said, 'What, Nana? You have become a money man!' I told him, 'Yaar, I am just returning your money.'
"Even today, whenever we meet, I stand behind him and start massaging his back and head. Back then, he would give me ₹5 for doing it. I would also massage his legs. Even today, when I do it, he says, 'Are Nana!' And I tell him, 'Let me do it. It's my ancestral business.' Today, he gives me ₹10 for it. Inflation has gone up, so he gives me ₹10."
The actor had also expressed a desire to build homes for veteran artistes who had worked hard in the industry but were struggling financially.
"I want them to come and stay there. Everything will be there. We will sit together, reminisce about our old days and eat together. There was a time when I did not have food on my table. Today, I have all these things, but they are not really mine. If we share what we have and eat together, that is what matters."
In his career of close to five decades, Patekarwon the National Film Award thrice Best Actor for "Krantiveer" and two Best Supporting Actor honours for "Parinda" and "Agni Sakshi" .
He recalled the reaction of his mother when he won his first National Award for "Parinda", in which he played a gangster.
"I came home with the award and was very happy. And I told my mother, 'I got the award.' She said, 'Wah wah, keep it up. For what?' She had seen 'Parinda', so I told her, 'For the film you saw.' She said, 'For such a bad role, you got an award? They don't know whom to give awards to. If you do such roles again, don't come back home.'
"She did not like my role in "Parinda". She couldn't stand the idea of someone hating her son," he said.
He received several other awards, but those honours held little significance for him.
"I don't even go to receive most of them. But I will go for a National Award because it is given by my country and it is the biggest honour. I can't say no to that," he said.
Patekar said he was surprised when the government announced that he would be conferred the Padma Shri, the country's fourth-highest civilian honour, in 2013.
"Usually, they ask you and you have to fill out a form, but I didn't do anything. My name was suddenly announced. Since it is an honour given by the country, I cannot refuse it. But I don't feel I have done enough to deserve a Padma Shri."
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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