Ganesh Chaturthi is almost here, and the devotees of Lord Ganesha are gearing up to mark the day. It will begin on September 19 and conclude on September 28. Now, ahead of it, on Friday, the first look of Mumbai's iconic Lalbaugcha Raja was revealed.
Lalbaugcha Raja Pandal marked art director Nitin Desai's last design before his death. He passed away by suicide at his N.D. Studio in Karjat, Maharashtra, on August 2, 2023.
Days before his demise, Nitin Desai took to his social media handle and shared the pictures ahead of the Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations. He captioned it, "May the king of Lalbagh be victorious. May the king of Lalbagh be victorious. The mandap puja and decoration of Shri Ganesha in the 90th year of the Raja of Lalbagh was completed today. Ganapati Bappa Morya."
Nitin Desai had created sets for popular Bollywood movies including Lagaan, Jodhaa Akbar, Munnabhai M.B.B.S., Lage Raho Munna Bhai, and Prem Ratan Dhan Payo. He also won the National Film Award for Best Art Direction four times and the Filmfare Best Art Direction Award three times.
Meanwhile, on August 4th, an FIR was registered by Desai's wife, Neha Desai, against five persons, including officials of ECL Finance and Edelweiss Group, for the alleged abetment of art director Nitin Desai's suicide, reported news agency PTI. However, no arrests have been made yet.
