Nagpur: Actor-activist Vira Sathidar, best known for featuring in the National Award-winning film Court, died Tuesday due to COVID-19 related complications. This information was confirmed by filmmaker Chaitanya Tamhane. Vira Sathidar was in his early sixties. He was admitted to a city hospital after he contracted the coronavirus.
Tamhane had directed Sathidar in the acclaimed 2014 film Court. He said the actor was put on ventilator and breathed his last around 3.00am.
“It’s true. He passed away at around 3.00am in the hospital. He had COVID-19 and was on ventilator. It’s an unfortunate news. It is yet to sink in,” Tamhane said.
Sathidar rose to prominence after playing the role of protest singer NaNarayan Kamble in Court. In the film he is accused of encouraging a manhole worker to commit suicide through one of his folk songs.
Tamhane said the news of Sathidar’s demise has come as a ‘huge shock’ to him.
“He was not only an actor, activist and a poet but also one of the nicest human beings I’ve met. I still can’t process it. He was a fantastic person. I can now only think of the time we spent making Court,” the director added.
Apart from Court, which was India’s official entry to Oscars 2016, Sathidar went on to feature in two more short films.