His acting prowess may have earned film star Nana Patekar millions of fans but it's his shooting skills with the gun that have made him quite popular in sports circles.

His obsession with the gun has made the star of many Bollywood films like "Ab Tak Chhappan" and "Krantiveer" a big hit among some of the top shooters of the country like Raunak Pandit, Avneet Kaur Sidhu and Anuja Jung.

"He (Patekar) is a just a wonderful man to deal with. When he takes part in any tournament he is just like any other shooter," Pandit told on the sidelines of the ongoing 33rd National Games here.

"Nana is very down to earth and when you sit down with him and talk he will never make you feel that he is some kind of a superstar."

The Bollywood actor has been taking part in many national tournaments in the past 12 months and also won a silver medal in the rifle prone (big bore) 300-metre event in the 14th G.V. Mavlankar shooting championship last year and qualified for the National Shooting Championships last year in Indore.

In the nationals he failed to make a mark but won the hearts of fellow shooters.

Both Raunak Pandit, the son of shooter and Arjuna Award winner Ashok Pandit, and Patekar hail from Maharashtra. The actor is also helping some upcoming shooters from the state, Pandit said.

"He is also helping some of the shooters and frequently visits the shooting academy in Kolhapur," said Pandit.

Patekar's other state-mate Anuja Jung added that the actor was also a big prankster and loved to joke with fellow competitors.

"He knows everyone of us by name and is always making fun and joking with us. He never makes us feel that he is very different. It is always fun to have him around," said Anuja.

Anuja's husband, Samresh, has not interacted much with Patekar but said: "I met him only once during the National Championships in Indore but he was a fantastic guy. He wanted to be like any other shooter but people around him never gave him the chance to do so."