Mahesh Manjrekar on Nana Patekar’s final hours and Tanushree Dutta controversy: 'He suffered'

Nana and Mahesh

Actor-filmmaker Mahesh Manjrekar is still coming to terms with the loss of his close friend and colleague, Nana Patekar. Unfortunately, he was away due to work when Nana Patekar breathed his last. In a recent interview, Manjrekar opened up about the bond they shared, his regret over not being able to meet Nana one last time and the circumstances surrounding the veteran actor's death.

He also revisited the Tanushree Dutta controversy, maintaining that the incident had been unnecessarily highlighted and that Nana had suffered considerably because of it.

Mahesh Manjrekar still coming to terms with Nana Patekar's death

Speaking about Nana's sudden demise, Manjrekar admitted that he continues to struggle with the fact that he could not see his friend one last time as he was not in India. Recalling their equation, he said that they would often verbally abuse each other, and he would have done the same even today had Nana been around."It was so unfair of him to leave. I would have abused him and told him that it was not fair to go like this. You had no right to leave, especially when I wasn't around. At least you could have fallen sick and let us know that you were unwell, so that we could have come and looked after you. But everything happened so suddenly. It was unfortunate," he said in an interview with News18 Marathi,Manjrekar also shared his thoughts on the circumstances leading to Nana's death.

Recalling what he learnt about the final hours, he said that Nana had reportedly started feeling uneasy at around 2:30 am but instead of immediately seeking medical help, he informed his family about his discomfort.According to Manjrekar, Nana contacted his elder brother again around 3:30 am, saying that he was still not feeling well. He reportedly told his brother that he would inform him if the discomfort increased.

His brother subsequently reached Nana's home and urged him to visit a hospital.Manjrekar pointed out that one of Goa's best hospitals was barely four minutes away from Nana's residence. However, Nana was reportedly reluctant to visit a doctor, believing that the discomfort could be due to gas. While he was talking about it, he suffered a massive cardiac attack.Questioning why Nana did not seek medical attention when he first felt uneasy, Manjrekar said, "I keep wondering why he didn't go to the hospital in the first place when it was so close to his house.

Why didn't he go? I am now stressing too much about these ifs and buts."Getting emotional, he added, "If there is life after death, the first person I would love to meet after my family is Nana."

Mahesh Manjrekar revisits the Tanushree Dutta controversy, says Nana Patekar suffered a lot

During the same conversation, Manjrekar also spoke candidly about the controversy involving Tanushree Dutta and Nana Patekar. He maintained that the episode had been unnecessarily brought back into the spotlight and said that he knew what had transpired on the sets."Some people are like that. Even if everyone supports them and one person doesn't, they will not like it. It is okay. But then they bring up an old matter. I know what happened that day. Everyone on the set was known to me, and I also know who was present there. It was highlighted for no reason," he said.

Manjrekar further claimed that people he knew who were present on the sets had told him that nothing had happened. He expressed regret over the fact that Nana had to endure considerable suffering because of the controversy."Everyone I knew on the sets had told me that nothing had happened. Nothing at all had happened. Nana suffered a lot for no reason. One should ignore such things. But because of social media, everybody has their own opinion, and there is no cure for this," he said.