What are people's opinions on Nana Patekar's acting? Why has he not been able to win the National Award for best Actor despite being nominated several times?

 Nana Patekar is a terrific actor even though he has not been celebrated enough. He belong to the category of the likes of Naseer, Om, Pankaj Kapoor though he has remained in the confines of commercial cinema, he has given some really brilliant performances right since Gaman to Ankush to Parinda, Krantiveer, Agnisakshi, Ab tak Chappan, Apharan, Welcome, Khamoshi, Deol, Natsmarat etc.

But the question is completely incorrect. Nana Patekar has won 3 National awards including one for Best Actor. His 3 National awards were -

1. Best Supporting Actor for Parinda (1989)- He also won the Filmfare award for Best Supporting Actor.
2. Best Actor for Krantiveer (1994)- Won every best actor award including the Filmfare for Best actor
3. Best Supporting Actor for Agni Sakshi (1996)- He was nominated for Best Actor Filmfare for this performance as well.

The other performances where he delivered award winning performance were Natsmarat (a role that has been immortalised by many actors in Marathi theatre and cinema). When asked about his views about “Natsamrat”, Irrfan said, “It was an outstanding film. It (film) should have won National Award for Nana ji (Nana Patekar), but I was not there in the jury.

Also he gave a commendable performance in Khamoshi: The Musical where he played a mute person and acted through his eyes.

But if you truly like Nana Patekar I would like to recommend one of his most underrated film and performance that not many people have seen. The film is called Diksha (1990). It is an art house film where Nana Patekar plays a lower caste person living near an ashram. It is a brilliant satire on the corrupt practices of the priest and Nana has acted with minimal dialogues.

Which film did Raveena Tandon win the National Award for her role?

 Raveena Tandon won the National Award for Best Actress for her performance in the film Daman (2001). The film was directed by Kalpana Lajmi. She won the award even before the theatrical release of the film.

Raveena plays the character of Durga Saikia, a battered wife struggling against an abusive husband (Sayaji Shinde).

The film also broke her onscreen glamourous image. Her portrayal was recognised for her authencity and depth capturing the intense fear and emotional trauma of an abused woman.

Raveena Tandon did this film free of charge. Juhi Chawla was the first choice for this role. Singer Shaan too made his debut as an actor with this film (previously did a special appearance in a song in Tarkieb).

The film transferred Raveena's image from a commercial “glamour girl” to a critically acclaimed serious actress, prompting her to pick up more challenging, socially relevant projects such as Shool and Satta.

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