A chilling don, a vigilante, and a sadistic wife-beater: The roles that earned Nana Patekar his 3 National Awards

Nana Patekar won three National Film Awards in a nine-year period for playing characters that were not just impactful but also diverse.

The style of acting that Nana Patekar brought to Bollywood in the 1980s was unprecedented. In an industry where slowness of dialogue delivery and ‘thehraav’ were rewarded, Nana brought the angst and rage of the 80s, channelling them through his fast-talking and imbuing his characters with unusual quirks and ticks. This led to him winning three National Film Awards in a nine-year period. The films and the performances that won him these prestigious awards were as diverse and different as they could be. A look at the three stellar performances that made Nana Patekar a three-time National Award winner.

Best Supporting Actor for Parinda (1989)

Nana Patekar won his third and final National Film Award for Agni Sakshi in 1997.

Loosely inspired by On The Waterfront, Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Parinda is considered one of the first Bollywood films to set a template for how the underworld and gangsters could be depicted realistically. In this film, Nana Patekar portrayed Anna in a manner that would pave the way for the Manoj Bajpayees and Ajay Devgns to follow suit years later. His Anna lorded over the city. He was kind, but brutal; menacing, but jovial. The kind of restraint Nana brought to this otherwise bloodthirsty character made him all the scarier. It won him his first National Award and his maiden Filmfare Award.

Nana Patekar as Anna in Parinda.

Best Actor for Krantiveer (1995)

Krantiveer won Nana his only Best Actor National Award.

Best Supporting Actor for Agni Sakshi (1997)

Bollywood made three ‘unofficial’ remakes of Julia Roberts’ Sleeping With The Enemy, all released in 1996. Yaraana had Rishi Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit’s star power, while Daraar was hailed for Arbaaz Khan’s chilling debut. But the most successful and most critically acclaimed of these was Agni Sakshi, starring Nana, Manisha Koirala, and Jackie Shroff. Nana played Vishwanath, a sadistic, controlling, possessive, and abusive husband who makes his wife’s life a living hell. Even after she escapes his clutches, he stalks her and her new partner. One particular scene where Nana first assaults Madhu (Manisha) and then applies medicine to her wounds himself was a chilling display of Nana’s range as an actor and the way he owned the screen without overshadowing his co-performers.

Agni Sakshi paired Nana with Manisha Koirala.

Nana Patekar continued acting through the 2000s and 2010s, delivering many strong performances. Many are surprised that he never won another National Award, given the kind of strong presence he had in films like Ab Tak Chhappan, Kaala, and Natsamrat, to name a few. He did win a Best Villain Filmfare Award for his role as a kidnapping mafia kingpin in Prakash Jha’s Apaharan, but the National Award eluded him.

Nana Patekar died on Wednesday morning at his Goa residence. He was found unconscious at his residence in Dona Paula, Goa, and was rushed to Manipal Hospital. Doctors attempted to revive the actor for around 45 minutes but were unsuccessful. His last performance was in Vishal Bhardwaj’s O’Romeo, which released earlier this year.