.webp)
New Delhi, Oct 8: Veteran actor Nana Patekar, one of Indian cinema’s most powerful and distinctive performers, died on Thursday, October 8, at the age of 75. He reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest at his residence in Goa and was rushed to Manipal Hospital. Despite doctors’ efforts to revive him for nearly 45 minutes, he was declared dead at around 5:20 am.
While Patekar’s legacy will forever be associated with iconic films, unforgettable characters and his unmistakable dialogue delivery, there was another passion that remained close to his heart-cricket.
Also read: Political leaders mourn Nana Patekar’s demise
Long before he became a celebrated actor, Patekar was a young cricket enthusiast in Mumbai. In a 2015 interview, he recalled that he was a good off-spin bowler as a child. But his family’s financial struggles meant he could not afford formal cricket coaching.
Instead, he found his own way to learn the game.
“I was an off-spin bowler as a child. We were poor then and didn't have money in our pockets to learn cricket,” he recalled.
Patekar would walk to Shivaji Park, one of Mumbai’s most famous cricket grounds, and bowl to players practising in the nets. Those early experiences stayed with him even after cinema transformed his life.
He once confidently claimed that even at an advanced age, just 10 days of practice would be enough for him to bowl well again- a glimpse of the cricketer he still carried within him.
His love for the sport remained strong throughout his life. Among contemporary players, Virat Kohli was particularly close to his heart. Patekar once joked that if Kohli got out early, he would lose his appetite. The remark resurfaced on social media in January 2025 after one of Kohli’s early dismissals.
For Patekar, cricket and acting shared an important similarity: both demanded performance under pressure and ultimately placed the performer at the mercy of the audience. A cricketer could be tested over five days, he observed, while an actor might spend one-and-a-half to two years on a film before the public delivers its verdict.
That understanding of performance perhaps explains the intensity that became Patekar’s trademark.
Also read: Nana Patekar dies at 75 after cardiac arrest; Cinema mourns a legendary Performer
From Parinda and Krantiveer to Welcome and Natsamrat, he moved effortlessly between gritty drama and comedy, earning a reputation as one of Indian cinema’s most versatile actors.
Yet behind the celebrated actor was always the boy who walked to Shivaji Park with a cricket ball, determined to play despite having little money.
Cinema made Nana Patekar a legend. Cricket remained the passion that kept the boy within him alive.
As fans and the film industry mourn his passing, that lesser-known side of the actor offers another way to remember a man whose life was defined not only by his performances, but also by his enduring love for the game
.webp)
