When Distributors Refused To Buy This 1994 Nana Patekar Film

There are very few actors, whose raw acting is instantly connected with the masses. One of them is Nana Patekar. Ever since he set foot in the acting, he has been showcasing his acting prowess with one film after another and created a niche for himself in the industry. He was one of the most sought-after actors in the country and everyone wanted to work with him. But did you know that once a distributor refused to buy his film? Later this film emerged to be a blockbuster.

In 1994, the Indian Silver Screen was graced with Krantiveer, an action crime drama, directed and produced by Mehul Kumar. It starred Nana Patekar, Dimple Kapadia, Atul Agnihotri, Mamta Kulkarni, Farida Jalal, Paresh Rawal and Danny Denzongpa among others. The film emerged to be the third highest-grossing film of the year and won various accolades and awards, including a National Film Award. The film was also remade in Telugu as Punya Bhoomi Naa Desam and in Kannada as Parodi.

When the film hit the theatres in 1994, Nana Patekar had already established himself as a character actor. But when he starred as a hero in the film, distributors were not ready to bet on the actor. Nana Patekar won the hearts of the people with his par excellence acting skills and the film created a huge storm at the box office. But when the director Mehul Kumar approached distributors for the film, they refused. The makers bargained that if the film did not work, they would not ask for a single penny from them. The distributors saw the film and agreed to the conditions.

Nobody expected the film to set the cash registers ringing. Fans flocked to the theatres to watch Nana Patekar’s film. After Krantiveer, he starred in many other hit films in his career like Parinda, Khamoshi: The Musical, Ab Tak Chhappan, Taxi No. 9211, Welcome, The Attacks of 26/11 and recently The Vaccine War. He was last seen in the Marathi film, Ole Aale.