Several film personalities condoled the demise of celebrated art director Nitin Desai. He was known for designing sets of popular big-budget titles such as Ashutosh Gowariker's Lagaan and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Devdas. Desai was found hanging from the ceiling fan at his studio in the Karjat area of Raigad, about 50 km from Mumbai.
Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, who has worked with Desai in films like Traffic Signal, Fashion, Jail, and Indu Sarkar spoke exclusively to The Free Press Journal, mourning his demise.
He said, “I woke up to the tragic news of my close friend Nitin passing away. He was such a likable person and was on good terms with every political party. Be it Ganpati Pandal or any other event, he was always there to help the organisers. I started my association with him way back in 2006 with Traffic Signal, and then he did Fashion, Jail, and Indu Sarkar with me. While I planned the shoot of Indu Sarkar in 2017, I called him and informed him that it is a small-budget film so he offered me his ND Studios. I was worried as to how I would recreate Delhi during the early 70s but he helped me throughout. There’s a portion that is still called Traffic Signal set in his studios.”
“In fact, when my films Babli Bouncer and India Lockdown were released on OTT, he called and shared his appreciation. In April this year, he even organised his daughter’s wedding which was a lavish celebration. I don’t know what pushed him to take this adverse step. It is an untimely death and a huge loss for our entire industry,” added Bhandarkar.
As per PTI, officials are investigating the case from all angles. "Desai's body was found hanging with a rope in the morning at the N D Studios," Raigad Superintendent of Police Somnath Gharge said.
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