Sharing a still from Aziz Mirza’s 1992 cult classic Raju Ban Gaya Gentleman, Khan reminisced about their first encounter during the nascent days of his Bollywood career, recounting Patekar's tough love, his disdain for superficial vanity, and the enduring advice that shaped his artistic compass.
Recalling the awe and anxiety he felt standing before an established theatrical force like Patekar in the early 1990s, Khan revealed how the veteran immediately dismantled his beginner's awkwardness:
“When I first met him, out of awe and awkwardness I fiddled with my hair. He slapped my hand away and said ‘Hero ki tarah baal mat bana... tu actor hai’! He didn’t flatter you. He didn’t tell you what you wanted to hear. He told you what you needed to hear. That was Nana. Straightforward. Rough, honest and had the most beautiful smile.”
Khan captured Patekar’s famously gruff exterior, explaining that behind the sharp tongue was genuine warmth and deep affection:
“He always had a strange way of showing affection. He would shout at you first, and then somewhere between the third or fourth insult, you realised you were being hugged. He loved me and I loved him back. He was a mentor, a teacher, a critic and a friend who beat me and everyone else around him in carrom game after game and relished his victories.”
Reflecting on the finality of Patekar's demise, Khan expressed regret over missed moments while promising to carry Patekar’s philosophy with him indefinitely:
“Nana, your intensity, laughter, madness and love will always stay with us. I just wish we had time to have more conversations, another argument, another cup of tea and a game of carrom. You have left a void not only in the world of cinema but in the hearts of all Indians and the world. All I can say is, I will miss you dearly and carry your words in my heart till the end of time.... ‘Hero banne ke chakkar mein actor mat khona’. May your soul rest in peace Nana and Allah bless you. The Heavens will be blessed to have you... a masterful actor and an unbeatable carrom champion. Love you and miss you dearly!! Too soon my Hero Actor! RIP.”
Shah Rukh Khan’s tribute captures the deep respect Nana Patekar commanded from even the biggest stars of Indian cinema. Long before modern stardom was defined by curated brand images, Patekar remained a fiercely grounded craftsman who demanded authenticity from his peers—a standard reflected in the early lesson he drilled into young Shah Rukh: to never let stardom eclipse the art of acting.
