Nana Patekar, happy 61st birthday!

The veteran actor of Hindi and Marathi cinema celebrates his birthday today

Born on January 1, 1951, Nana Patekar turns 61 today. While the entire nation is bringing in the New Year with great gusto, there will be double celebrations at the Patekar house. Nana started his film career with his powerful roles and hatke performances in films such as Ankush, Pratighaat and Salaam Bombay, but it was his portrayal of the gangster Anna in Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Parinda that made him a household name, and brought him appreciation from the audiences and critics alike. It even won him the National Film Award for the Best Supporting Actor and the Filmfare Award for the Best Supporting Actor.

After essaying prominent characters onscreen like the hot-tempered cop in Tirangaa, the wife-beating over-possessive husband in Agnisakshi and the differently-abled father in Khamoshi, Nana tried his hand at direction with Prahaar – a movie based on the Indian Army.

The actor has also explored Marathi cinema and his film Deool which released last year, co-starring Naseeruddin Shah, broke several records. He took up rifle shooting a few years back and excelled in that too. With movies like The Attacks of 26/11 and Ab Tak Chhappan 2 this year, we wish him a happy birthday and hope he has a rocking 2013.