Rupali Ganguly remembers her 'Anupamaa' co-star Nitesh Pandey: Can't believe I'll never meet him again!

(Pics courtesy: Rupali Ganguly/ Instagram and Nitesh Pandey/Twitter)

Actor Nitesh Pandey who was last seen in the popular Rupali Ganguly-starrer TV show, 'Anupamaa', passed away on Tuesday at the age of 51 after suffering a cardiac arrest.

Nitesh Pandey who was seen essaying the role of Dheeraj Kapoor in Star Plus' popular show, suffered a cardiac arrest on Tuesday in Igatpuri, Maharashtra. Pandey reportedly was found dead in a hotel.

Rupali Ganguly, who plays the titular character in the popular TV show, 'Anupamaa', and who has also shared screen space with the late actor Nitesh Pandey, has reacted to the news of his passing away.

Recalling the fond memories and the bond she shared with Nitesh, Rupali says, "He was the only industry friend who stayed constantly in touch with me apart from Delnaaz (Irani) and Sarabhais (The star cast of 'Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai'), during my sabbatical. He had even come to meet me after Rudransh was born. I can't believe this! His son Aarav is just a few months older than Rudransh. He had messaged me just last week about a painting he had made and we had made plans to make our sons meet. "

"We would bond over dogs. His wife Arpita is an animal caregiver, a feeder too like me. I am devastated! He was so so so fiercely protective about me," Ganguly further added.

Speaking about the last time she saw Nitesh and how they had made a plan to catch up, Rupali who is still in disbelief says, "Even when he came to Anupamaa, it felt as if you have your bestie next to you at your workplace. Just this month beginning, I had gone very late for a film's get-together and saw his car leaving, so I called him and said 'I saw you' and he said "Tu ruk main aata hoon gaadi ghumake", and I said 'no no ghar jaa agale hafte milte hai'. Teen hafte ho gaye uss baat ko and now I will never meet him. I can't believe this!"

As per ANI, Pandey was found dead at a hotel in Igatpuri and the investigation for his death is on. Breaking the news on Twitter, the news agency tweeted, "TV actor Nitesh Pandey found dead at a hotel in Igatpuri, Nashik in Maharashtra. Prima facie, the cause of death seems to be a heart attack. A police team present at the hotel and investigation is underway. Postmortem report is awaited. Questioning of hotel staff and people close to him is being done."

Nitesh Pandey was known for working in TV shows such as 'Manzilein Apani Apani', 'Astitva...Ek Prem Kahani', 'Saaya', 'Justajoo' and 'Durgesh Nandini' and in films including 'Om Shanti Om', 'Khosla Ka Ghosla', 'Badhaai Do', 'Shaadi Ke Side Effects', and 'Rangoon'. He also worked in theatre shows Pandey like 'Aastha' and 'Misal Pav'.