Nana Patekar immortal through his work, says son Malhar; vows to carry his vision

Actor Nana Patekar’s legacy will continue through his films and social work, his son Malhar Patekar said following the actor’s cremation in Pune. Malhar also spoke about carrying forward his father’s vision through the Naam Foundation, which works in areas such as water conservation, education and healthcare. Speaking to reporters, Malhar said his father’s contributions had made him immortal and that his ideas would continue to guide those working to fulfil his vision.“A person like Nana Saheb never truly leaves us; his achievements have made him immortal,” he said.Malhar added that Nana had always believed in bringing people together and encouraging them to follow the right path. He said the family would focus on taking forward the vision the actor had left behind.Speaking about the Naam Foundation’s ongoing initiatives, Malhar said work related to water conservation was already underway, while projects in education and healthcare had also begun in Kashmir. He added that Nana had assigned responsibilities to people involved in the work before his death, helping ensure that the organisation’s initiatives could continue.Nana Patekar wanted to expand social work in MarathwadaMalhar also spoke about the foundation’s work in Maharashtra’s Marathwada region. He said he had spoken to the Chief Minister shortly before addressing the media and that the foundation’s projects were continuing under the guidance of its chief executive officer, Ganesh Thorat. According to Malhar, the Chief Minister acknowledged the foundation’s previous collaboration with the government and stressed the importance of fulfilling Nana’s plans to expand the work further.Malhar said the priority now was to ensure that the actor’s vision for the region was carried out.#WATCH | Pune, Maharashtra: On the demise of his father and veteran actor Nana Patekar, Malhar Patekar says, "A person like Nana Saheb never truly leaves us; his achievements have made him immortal. Secondly, he always believed that everyone should come together and follow a righteous path on a global scale... Thirdly, regarding the future—carrying forward the vision Nana Saheb left behind is how we will shape the life ahead. Regarding the Marathwada tour... Nana had recently spoken about it; the work related to it was about to begin... When I met him, we discussed this matter... Given the massive scale at which the NAAM Foundation operates. The CM also felt that if we work together, we would be able to achieve the target..." He further says, "We proceeded (with the last rites today) because the tragedy occurred early this morning, so a significant amount of time had already passed. That is why we decided to go ahead with it today.— ANI (@ANI) October 8, 2026Why Nana Patekar’s last rites were held on ThursdayExplaining the decision to conduct the last rites on Thursday night, Malhar said the family had chosen to proceed with the funeral because several hours had already passed since the tragedy earlier that morning.Nana Patekar died after suffering severe chest pain. He was taken to Manipal Hospital, where doctors attempted to revive him for around 45 minutes, according to Dr Shekhar Salkar, head of the hospital’s oncology department.The actor was cremated in Pune with full state honours.- Ends