Journalism of Courage
Marathi actor and danseuse Ashwini Ekbote breathed her last Saturday night at around 8:15 pm while performing on stage at Bharat Natya Mandir, Pune. A renowned name in theatre and Marathi cinema, Ashwini has acted in movies like Baavre Prem He, Dankyavar Danka, Aarambh, Debu, Mahaguru, Taptpadi and Kshan Ha Mohacha. She was a regular on stage and has performed plays in Maharashtra and Gujarat. Bho Bho was her last movie co-starring actor Prashant Damle. Her current on-air serials are- Ganpati Bappa Morya, Duheri and Aaisaheb. (Source: Ashwini Ekbote Facebook)
Ashwini completed her education in Pune. Ashwini's name before marriage was Ashwini Katkar. She was a trained Bharatnatyam dancer. Ashwini was actively involved in theatres and dance. She had also performed in Sydney, Australia to a houseful audience. The actor is survived by husband Pramod Ekbote and son Shubhankar Ekbote. She was 44-year-old.
Ashwini Ekbote preferred to keep a low profile as an actress. Her strength was entering the skin of the character. (Source: Ashwini Ekbote Facebook, Naren Bedekar)
Ashwini's chemistry with actor Sharad Ponkshe was famous. Sharad also directed her in the Marathi play Eka Kshanaat. (Source: Ashwini Ekbote Facebook, Naren Bedekar)
Some pictures from Ashwini's first photo shoot. These were taken around 13-14 years ago. (Source: Atul Shidhaye)
Marathi artistes including Sonali Kulkarni, Bhagyesh Desai and Ravi Jadhav took to social media to share their shock at the news. (Source: Ashwini Ekbote Facebook, Naren Bedekar )
Actor Sonali Kulkarni wrote on Twitter, “This is extremely shocking!!! Dear friend Ashwini Ekbote no more! So young, so fit, so full of life..! RIP.” (Source: Ashwini Ekbote Facebook, Naren Bedekar)
