Satish Shah cremated; Film, TV fraternity pays emotional tributes

Mumbai, Oct 26 (PTI) Family members, friends, and colleagues from the film and television industry bid a tearful adieu to veteran actor Satish Shah, who was cremated here on Sunday afternoon.

Industry veteran Naseeruddin Shah, his wife Ratna Pathak Shah, who was also Satish Shah's co-star in "Sarabhai vs Sarabhai", other actors from the fan-favourite show, and members of the film fraternity attended his final farewell.

Satish Shah passed away on Saturday at the age of 74 following a kidney ailment. He is survived by his wife, Madhu Shah, a designer.

The mortal remains were brought to his home in Bandra (East) in an ambulance at around 11 am, and the same vehicle was later decked with marigold flowers and two photographs of the actor on the front and rear sides.

The body was later transported to Pawan Hans Crematorium in Vile Parle for the last rites, which were conducted by Shah’s personal assistant Ramesh Kadatala.

"He (Ramesh) has been like his (Shah) son. He has been with the couple for close to 40 years. It’s a personal loss for him. He has devoted his entire life to them. Now, he has to take care of Madhu ji, who is suffering from Alzheimer's. She doesn’t recognise people. She only realised this morning about (Shah’s demise)," film producer Ashok Pandit told PTI.

Actors Rupali Ganguly and Rajesh Kumar, co-stars of Satish Shah in "Sarabhai vs Sarabhai", turned emotional as they bid him a final goodbye.

Satish Shah essayed the role of Indravadhan Sarabhai, the funny and lovable patriarch of the Sarabhai family, who elicited laughs with his witty one-liners on the show.

Others from the "Sarabhai vs Sarabhai" team, including actors Sumeet Raghavan, Anang Desai, Paresh Ganatra, producer JD Majethia, writer-director Aatish Kapadia, and actor-director Deven Bhojani, also attended the funeral.

The actor’s close friends and colleagues, Pankaj Kapur, Supriya Pathak, Swaroop Sampat, Suresh Oberoi, and Poonam Dhillon, were also present.

Other members of the film fraternity, including Neil Nitin Mukesh, Dilip Joshi, Farah Khan, Jackie Shroff, Ali Asgar, Tiku Talsania, Sudhir Pandey, Sharat Saxena, and Avatar Gil, also attended the last rites.

In a video on social media, actor-producer JD Majethia, writer-director Aatish Kapadia, actor-director Deven Bhojani, actors Rupali Ganguly, Sumeet Raghavan, Rajesh Kumar, and Paresh Ganatra, were seen paying tribute to the late actor with the title song of "Sarabhai vs Sarabhai".

Kumar took to social media to post the video and wrote, "The final bye.. could not have been complete without #sarabhai song… Long Live Indu kaka, did you hear… I also tried to sing?" Majethia said it was their way of "celebrating" Shah.

"We wanted to pay him a tribute in our own way. So, once almost everybody had left the crematorium, we sang it (title track of the show) for him. I think he would’ve liked it this way. He is a man who should be celebrated," Majethia told PTI.

According to Majethia, the late actor underwent kidney transplant primarily to get better and to take care of his ailing wife, Madhu, who is suffering from Alzheimer's.

"She has realised it (Shah’s demise). Initially, she didn’t know anything. She said, 'He is inside, and that he will come out in sometime'. We were like, ‘Okay, we are waiting’. But once Satish ji’s mortal remains were brought home, and we were performing the rituals, she was brought out to see the reality and bid goodbye to him. She put her hand on his head and she started crying. She was sitting by his side for a long time. It is tragic,” Majethia told PTI, adding that they all are going to stay connected with Madhu.

The actor-producer recalled that Satish Shah would often speak about his wife and her health.

"Her condition has deteriorated. I remember Satish ji would always say that, ‘I don’t have any other worry except for Madhu’s health, and nothing else in life," he said.

Satish Shah, a graduate of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), first appeared in minor roles in films such as "Arvind Desai Ki Ajeeb Dastaan", "Gaman", and "Umrao Jaan".

He later went on to create a niche for himself with his performance in films and TV shows such as "Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron", "Maalamaal", "Hero Hiralal", "Yeh Jo Hai Zindagi", "Filmi Chakkar", "Hum Aapke Hai Koun..!", "Saathiya", "Main Hoon Na", "Kal Ho Naa Ho", and the sitcom "Sarabhai vs Sarabhai", among others. PTI KKP GK ARU