24 April,2021 07:01 AM IST | Mumbai | Uma Ramasubramanian
(From left) Amit Mistry, Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK
Raj Nidimoru, one-half of successful director duo Raj-DK, remembers that Amit Mistry had a single complaint. "He would say that he wanted longer roles so that he could always be on the set," said Nidimoru, hours after the untimely demise of the 47-year-old actor. The popular Gujarati and Hindi film actor, who featured in supporting parts in Shor in the City (2011), Yamla Pagla Deewana (2011) and A Gentleman (2017), passed away last morning at his Andheri home after a cardiac arrest. His most acclaimed work came last year in the Amazon Prime Video series, Bandish Bandits, where he shone bright as musician Devendra Rathod.
It's a deeply personal loss for Nidimoru who had first collaborated with him on the crime comedy, 99 (2009), and went on to work on four projects. "When we met for 99, we immediately knew he would become one of our favourite actors. To find good actors is a joy, and he was a gifted artiste who could make any character his own. He was a happy guy, and would improvise with every take. He was one of those actors who never got his due. We tried to cast him in Go Goa Gone [2013] even though he didn't fit the character," said the director.
Given their fondness for Mistry, the director duo had roped him in for their upcoming production, Prakhand Pandit. "He shot in Mumbai till April 5, after which the shoot had to be halted due to the prevailing scenario. In fact, as we were developing a new story, we had already written a character for him."
