Nana Patekar is one of the most popular and celebrated actors in Bollywood. He has been part of numerous films in various languages. He a noted actor, writer, philanthropist and filmmaker. Nana Patekar has acted in almost 100 films over the course of his 40-year-old career. 

Read Nana Patekar: Best Marathi Movies That His Fans Can Not Afford To Miss

Nana Patekar was born on January 1, 1951

Read Nana Patekar: Top 5 Performances Of All Time

Early and personal life 

Nana Patekar was born on January 1, 1951, in Murud-Janjira of Raigad district, Maharashtra. He was born as Vishwanath Patekar. Nana led a tough childhood. However, he has credited his late father, who died when Nana was 28, for encouraging him to pursue acting. According to Nana, his father loved to watch plays and took young Nana to watch them. He married Neelkanti at the age of 27 and the couple had a son, but he died a few years later tragically. Nana chooses to remain an atheist but celebrates the festival of Ganpati because of tradition. The actor practices philanthropy and constantly works for the betterment of farmers in rural Maharashtra. 

Read Nana Patekar: Here Is A List Of Few Memorable Films Of The Actor

Film career

Nana first made his debut in the 1978 film, Gaman. He had a supporting role in the film, which starred Farooq Sheikh and Smita Patil and was the directorial debut of Muzaffar Ali, who went onto direct the 1982 film, Umrao Jaan, starring Rekha. In the early stages of his career, Nana did insignificant roles in various films. He landed his big breakthrough with the 1989 crime thriller, Parinda. Directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra and boasting of a stellar cast that included Jackie Shroff, Anil Kapoor and Madhuri Dixit, Nana Patekar essayed the role of a crime lord, Anna, in Mumbai. Upon release, the film was a runaway success and received critical acclaim. Much of the praise was directed to Nana's performance, which won him the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor respectively. 

After that, there was no looking back for Nana. He went onto win the National Film Award for Best Actor and Filmfare Award for Best Actor for his lead role in the 1994 film, Krantiveer. In 1996, he won his second National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for the film, Agni Sakshi. Nana Patekar is the only actor to have won the Filmfare Awards for Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor and Best Performance in a Negative Role. Later in his career, he won unanimous praise for his comic performance in the Welcome series. 

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