Veteran Journalist, Poet, and Filmmaker Pritish Nandy Passes Away at 73

MUMBAI: Renowned journalist, poet, and filmmaker Pritish Nandy passed away on Wednesday at the age of 73 after suffering a cardiac arrest at his residence in Mumbai. His last rites were performed in the evening, officials stated.

Tributes poured in from across the country, with veteran actor Anupam Kher expressing his grief on social media. "Deeply deeply saddened and shocked to know about the demise of one of my dearest and closest friends #PritishNandy! Amazing poet, writer, filmmaker and a brave and unique editor/journalist!" Kher wrote on X (formerly knoen as Twitter).

"He was my support system and a great source of strength in my initial days in Mumbai. We shared lots of things in common. He was also one of the most fearless people I had come across. Always Larger than life. I learnt so many things from him. Off-late we didn't meet much. But there was a time when we were inseparable! I will never forget when he surprised me by putting me on the cover of Filmfare and more importantly The Illustrated Weekly," Kher added.

Journalist Sheela Bhatt also paid her respects on X, stating, "Pritish Nandy, poet, editor, film producer and more is no more. He died today in Mumbai due to a heart attack. He was a game changer. He injected tremendous energy into staid magazine journalism of the early 80s. When he edited Illustrated Weekly of India we were awestruck. Daring subjects, bold letters, catchy titles and big size photographs attracted young readers," she wrote.

"Pritish lived life on his own terms. Before dying, he gave exact instructions to his daughters about what they should do. Pritish remains unrivalled. Remembering Pritish, your interview with legendary singer Kishore Kumar and many other stories. Deepest condolences to his family and friends. RIP, Pritish," Bhatt added.

Nandy, a former Rajya Sabha member representing the Shiv Sena, was also an advocate for animal rights.

His company, Pritish Nandy Communications, was behind several iconic films, including Sur, Kaante, Jhankaar Beats, Chameli, Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi, and Pyaar Ke Side Effects. As a prolific poet, Nandy authored around 40 books of poetry in English and translated poems from Bengali, Urdu, and Punjabi into English.

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