Odisha’s popular actor-director Hara Patnaik died on Tuesday at a private hospital here. He was 56. He is survived by his wife Jharana and two daughters.
Mr. Patnaik, who has ruled the hearts of legions of cine lovers in Odisha for decades, was suffering from blood cancer since 2008. He had earlier been treated at Christian Medical College, Vellore.
“We had released him from the hospital and sent him home last evening after realising that the end was near. But he was brought back to the hospital at 8.15 this morning after his condition deteriorated further. He was admitted to the ICU but we could not save him. The end came at 12.40 p.m. today,” his doctor said.
Mr. Patnaik acted in over 60 films as villain and directed 19 others. After initially recovering from cancer, he starred in the film Om Sai Ram in 2012.
As director, he gave several upcoming actors their first break in cinema. Among those who made it big in Odiya films after getting a break under him are Anubhav Mohanty, Babusan and Sabyasachi.
