A day after controversy erupted over a viral video of veteran Bollywood actor Nana Patekar slapping a fan as he tried to click a selfie in Varanasi, the actor released a video statement on Thursday (16th November). The actor clarified that there was a misunderstanding. The actor also apologised with folded hands seeking forgiveness and said that he would never make such a mistake again.
In the video message shared to his X profile, Nana Patekar said, “A video is going viral where I have hit a boy. Though this sequence is a part of our film, we had one rehearsal…We were scheduled to have a second rehearsal. The director told me to begin again. We were about to begin when the boy in the video came in. I didn’t know who he was, I thought he was one of our crew so I slapped him as per the scene and I told him to leave. Later, I came to know that he was not a part of the crew. So, I was going to call him back but he ran away. Maybe his friend shot the video. I have never said no to anybody for a photo. I don’t do this…This happened by mistake…If there is some misunderstanding, please forgive me…I never do such a thing and will never do anything like this. I wanted to apologise to him in person but he ran away. I was thinking the boy got slapped unnecessarily…we tried to find him but maybe out of fear he ran away,” Patekar said.
The video which is circulating on social media has been misinterpreted by many. What actually happened was a misunderstanding during the rehearsal of a shot from my upcoming film 'Journey'. pic.twitter.com/UwNClACGVG
— Nana Patekar (@nanagpatekar) November 15, 2023
The apology comes after a video of actor Nana Patekar slapping a fan on the head who attempted to snap a photo with him went viral online on November 15, Wednesday. The 10-second viral video was shot near Dashashwamedh Ghat in Varanasi, where he is currently shooting his upcoming film, Journey.
वाराणसी – नाना पाटेकर ने अपने फैंस को जड़ा थप्पड़ , फिल्म की शूटिंग के दौरान सेल्फी लेने पहुंचा था फैंस
— भारत समाचार | Bharat Samachar (@bstvlive) November 15, 2023
➡नाना पाटेकर ने थप्पड़ जड़कर फैंस को भगाया
➡सोशल मीडिया पर वायरल हुआ थप्पड़ मारने का वीडियो
➡वाराणसी में नाना पाटेकर कर रहे हैं फिल्म जर्नी की शूटिंग. #Varanasi pic.twitter.com/cFewolIYBC
After the video of the incident went viral online, Anil Sharma, the director of the film claimed that Nana Patekar did not hit anyone and that the viral video is one of the scenes from the film.
He [Nana Patekar] has not slapped anyone, it is a shot from our film,” director Anil Sharma stated hours after the video of Nana hitting a boy went viral. People have a knack for making a fuss out of nothing… We are currently filming the film Journey in Benaras. In the film, Patekar’s character suffers from dementia. His mind is distracted, and a person approaches to take a picture with him. There were so many people gathered around us to witness the shoot. I think someone clicked this specific portion, which is actually one of the scenes from the film.”
