When Makarand Deshpande refused to have lunch with Nana Patekar: ‘I thought he wasn’t correct at all…’

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Recalling a rather interesting incident, Makarand Deshpande said that in the run-up to the shoot, he hardly met Nana Patekar to rehearse or discuss the scene. “I was getting angsty, and as a enthusiastic theatre guy, I had to undertake extensive preparations. But Nana wasn’t doing it at all. I remember finding Nana’s jeep in a building, and randomly entering it to find him. I later realised it was Prahaar cinematographer Debu Deodhar’s house,” said Makarand, adding that Nana was all smiles when he knew why he turned up at the house. “He just smiled, and said that he had confidence in me, and that’s why I was cast. But in my head, I thought he wasn’t correct at all.”

Makarand explained that even till the first shot was canned, he strongly believed that Nana was wrong, and the fact that the director turned up after him confirmed his suspicions. “I waited for 15 minutes. In fact, I had already done my homework and preparations. I turned up with straightened hair, and readied my own shirt to look like a druggie, and he wasn’t there. And when he finally turned up, I told him that I was absolutely ready, and I’d tell him what to do in this scene,” said Makarand, who revealed that a smiling Nana simply retorted, “I am still the director, right?”

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Sharing another anecdote from Prahaar’s shooting, Makarand Deshpande said Madhuri Dixit wanted to improvise in a particular scene, but was shot down by Nana Patekar, albeit for a rather interesting reason. “Nana looked at Madhuri and asked her not to improvise anything because I would shout at her,” said an enterprising Makarand, who revealed that he was completely cross with what was happening, especially with Nana. “We completed the scenes before lunch, and after pack-up, Nana wanted to go for lunch together. I simply refused to have lunch with him, and told him that he didn’t give me time, and I won’t give mine.”