Veteran actor Hemu Adhikari, who is well-known in the Marathi theatre circuit, passed away on Monday, May 21, at his residence in Dadar, Mumbai. He was 81.
The actor, who had worked in several Bollywood films such as Lage Raho Munna Bhai and Singham, died due to a lung ailment. He was suffering from a lung infection.
Bollywood and Marathi film actor Sonali Kulkarni was among the first celebrities to mourn the actor's death on Twitter.
"Sad to know the demise of our dear friend, wonderful actor, sharp audience, deep thinker, passionate reader and a fearless, concerned citizen..RIP Hemukaka you'll be missed #RIP #HemuAdhikari," Kulkarni tweeted.
Producer Suhrud Godbole also tweeted on Monday mourning the death of the veteran actor. "So sad to hear about Hemu Adhikari's passing away. He will always be remembered," Godbole said.
Adhikari's last rites were performed at Shivaji Park crematorium on Monday night, the Press Trust of India quoted family sources as saying. Actors Ajit Bhure, Prasad Kambli, Anand Ingale, Vidyadhar Joshi and Santosh Kanekar attended the last rites of the actor. He is survived by wife, two daughters and a son.
So, who is Hemu Adhikari? Here are a few things to know about the veteran actor.
Adhikari was a businessman but his interests in the acting field made him work in the movie industry. In his career, he acted in more than 45 plays, including Juheres, Sandhyaaya and Haseva Khakavi.
He acted in around 16 Marathi films like Dhyaas Parya and Harishchandrachi Factory. Adhikari also worked in Hindi movies, including Sai Paranjpe's directorial Katha (1983), Rajkumar Hirani's Lage Raho Munna Bhai, Romilla Mukherjee's Detective Naani, Rohit Shetty's directorial Singham and N Chandra's directorial Wajood.
