Sharad Kelkar, Ananth Mahadevan, Sameer Vidwans and Abhijeet Deshpande react to the demise of Vikram Gokhale

Sharad Kelkar: “A big loss for us. We’ve lost one of our greatest actors. He was the superstar of Marathi cinema. He was, and will remain an inspiration for all of us actor who came after him. He was like an acting school and watching him was like attending classes.”

Sameer Sanjay Vidwans (director of the Marathi hits Double Seat and Anandi Gopal): “The work that Vikram Gokhale has done is exemplary. We’ve seen him in some Hindi films. But it’s Marathi cinema and theatre where his contribution is unmatched. He was a university of acting. Any aspiring actor can look at his performances for guidance. I shared a close relationship with him. The first Marathi screenplay that I ever wrote Aaghat was directed by Vikram Kaka. What to say? In my opinion, the Hindi film industry could not avail of his acting skills as much as the Marathi film industry. In Hindi, we remember him in Agneepath and Hum…Dil De Chuke Sanam, that’s it. The magic of his performances was not tapped sufficiently in Hindi cinema. Nonetheless his death is a grave loss to not only Marathi and Hindi cinema, but to cinema the world over.”

Abhijeet Deshpande (director Har Har Mahadev): “There was Marlon Brando, Prithviraj Kapoor and Vikram Gokhale. Without doubt the top three actors in the world who mastered both mediums, theatre and cinema with such power and excellence. I knew him personally and had the good fortune to interact with him during Natsamrat. Oddly, true, but he is probably the only actor who eclipsed the great Nana Patekar on screen. Will always be tragic that I never got to direct him. Truly a thespian and a legend. I have no words for his acting prowess.”

Ananth Mahadevan: “A doyen of Marathi theatre and films and Hindi cinema, Vikram Gokhale emerged as an icon of the performing arts. I had the good fortune of working with him in the Sony series Sambhav Asambhav where I first directed him. The chief minister in Gour Hari Dastaan as played by Vikram Gokhale was a memorable character. In Avrodh he played the PM while I played his State secretary. Only last month he had called me to say how much he wanted us to team up for another film. It was a learning experience every time I interacted with him. He had a bout of illness last year but he recovered and bounced back to the sets. How I wish he could have carried on to give us some more moments to cherish on screen! I still remember being humbled receiving my first Best Actor trophy from him for The Sword of Tipu Sultan and Nupoor.”

Also Read: Vikram Gokhale passes away in Pune at the age of 77

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