Veteran Marathi actress Ashalata Wabgaonkar no more; succumbs to COVID

Ashalata Wabgaonkar (Picture courtesy/Ashalata Wabgaonkar's official Facebook Account)

Ashalata Wabgaonkar, the veteran actress in the Marathi film industry, passed away on early hours of Tuesday. She was 79. Popularly known as Ashalata, the actress tested COVID-19 positive, along with other crew members of the ongoing Sony Marathi TV channel show 'Aai Majhi Kalubai'. She died after a 4-day battle with her illness at a private hospital in Satara.

Former Chief Minister of Goa, Digambar Kamat, confirmed the news in a tweet. He paid a tribute to the Goa-born actress and wrote, "Deeply pained by the passing away of acclaimed Goan Artist Ashalata Wabgaonkar. Her splendid performances in theatre & films will keep inspiring the generations to come. My condolences to her family & fans. May her soul rest in peace."

Filmmaker Basu Chatterjee introduced her in Hindi films with Apne Paraye (along with Bharati Achrekar) for which she was nominated for Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress. Ashalata worked in over 100 Hindi and Marathi films. Her notable Hindi films include Apne Paraye, Ankush, Woh 7 Din, Ahista Ahista, Shaukeen, and Namak Halal. Her Marathi films include Umbartha, Sutradhar, and Vahinichi Maya. Ashalata had acted in theatre too, notably, the Marathi plays Chinna, Gunata Hridhya He, and Varyavarchi Varaat. She also authored a book, Gard Sabhowati.

'Keep scrolling to read more news'

Catch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here. Also, download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps.

Mid-Day is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@middayinfomedialtd) and stay updated with the latest news

With inputs from IANS