Nana Patekar left Bollywood, joined Indian Army's fight against Pakistan during 1999 Kargil War after receiving Defence Minister George Fernandes' special permission to fight near LoC

Nana Patekar, a three time National Award winning actor, did something no one in Bollywood had attempted before him. In 1999, as India and Pakistan fought the Kargil War, Patekar approached Defence Minister George Fernandes and asked for special permission to serve on the front line. Patekar was made an honorary captain in the Indian Army and sent to active conflict zones, where he carried out real duties alongside soldiers fighting one of the toughest wars in recent Indian history.

What Made Nana Patekar Join Indian Army
By 1999, Patekar had already built a strong reputation in Hindi and Marathi cinema, with films like Parinda, Krantiveer and Prahaar behind him. Prahaar, which he directed and starred in, was based on army life, and Patekar had trained for three years with the Maratha Light Infantry to prepare for the role.


That training stayed with him. When Kargil War broke out, Patekar did not want to support soldiers only from a distance. He wanted to serve alongside them, and began pushing for a real posting rather than a symbolic one.

How Did He Get Special Permission To Serve
Army officials were hesitant at first. Letting a film actor serve in an active war zone was not a simple request to approve. Patekar persisted, pointing to his national level shooting skills and his earlier training with the Maratha Light Infantry as proof that he could handle a real deployment.

Eventually, Patekar got a personal meeting with Defence Minister George Fernandes. He laid out his case directly to the minister, and Fernandes was convinced enough to grant special permission. In August 1999, Patekar was officially made an honorary captain in the Indian Army.

What Was His Role Near Line Of Control
Patekar was not given a desk posting far from danger. He was stationed in some of the most sensitive conflict areas of the war, including Dras, Kupwara, Baramulla, Sopore and Mughalpura. His duties included patrol work right along the Line of Control, placing him close to active combat zones.

Beyond patrols, Patekar also assisted at military hospitals during his posting, spending time with wounded soldiers and helping wherever he could. Officers who worked with him during this period have described his involvement as hands on rather than ceremonial.

What Happened To Him During Service
Serving at the front took a visible physical toll on Patekar. Talking about it later, he said, "When I reached Srinagar, I weighed 76 kg. When I returned, I was 56 kg." Losing twenty kilos in a matter of months showed just how demanding the posting was, both physically and mentally.

Despite the strain, Patekar did not request an early exit. He completed his service through some of the most difficult months of the Kargil War, staying on duty alongside regular army personnel.

What Did He Do After Returning From Kargil
Once his posting ended, Patekar returned to films, but his focus did not stay only on acting. He began working closely with drought hit farmers, and later set up the Naam Foundation to support farming communities facing financial distress.

Over the years, Patekar has split his time between acting projects and this charity work, continuing to stay connected to causes outside the film industry. His Kargil service is often cited as the starting point for this shift toward public service work.

Who was Nana Patekar
Born Vishwanath Patekar in 1951, he started his acting career with the film Gaman in 1978. Over the decades that followed, he built a body of work that included Salaam Bombay, Agni Sakshi, Ab Tak Chhappan, Raajneeti and Natsamrat, picking up three National Awards along the way.

The 1999 Kargil War remains among India's most significant military conflicts in recent decades, fought at high altitude along the Line of Control after Pakistani forces crossed into Indian territory in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir. Indian forces regained control of key positions after months of intense fighting at extreme altitudes, with the war officially ending in July 1999. It remains one of the few conflicts fought at such difficult terrain and altitude anywhere in the world, and is remembered each year on Kargil Vijay Diwas.

(With agency inputs)