Film archivist P.K. Nair cremated in Pune; tributes pour in
The legendary film archivist was instrumental in the creation of the National Film Archive of India
Pune: Mortal remains of legendary film archivist P.K. Nair were on Saturday consigned to flames in Pune as eminent cinema personalities gathered in the city to bid adieu to the man who was instrumental in the creation of the National Film Archive of India.
“The cremation took place at 11 AM. I was in Mumbai and we were devastated to learn of his death. For me personally, his passing away means the loss of a spiritual father," filmmaker Shivendra Singh Dungarpur told PTI. “His loss is a big setback to the industry, given the people and filmmakers he inspired through his work, by giving them such phenomenal films to see."
Amol Palekar, Saeed Akhtar Mirza among others were present at the funeral.
“Several eminent filmmakers like Girish Kasaravalli, Jahnu Barua sent their condolence messages and expressed the loss of a man who was an institution in himself," Dungarpur said.
Dungarpur’s documentary film Celluloid Man, released in 2013, tells the story of the struggles and triumphs of Nair in almost single-handedly contributing to the creation of NFAI in Pune.
“The film for me was a journey into Nair saab’s lives and his triumphs and the loss of cinematic heritage that his work highlighted. He has left a big void that would be hard to fill. But we will take forward his vision," the filmmaker said.
Nair, 83, breathed his last on Friday in a city hospital where he was admitted for old age-related ailments on 22 February. Born in 1933 in Thiruvanathapuram, he is survived by two sons and a daughter.
Hoping to build a film career, he came to Mumbai in 1953 after graduating from the Kerala University. He worked in association with veterans like Mehboob Khan, Bimal Roy and Hrishikesh Mukherjee. Later, he turned his focus to the academic side of cinema and became an assistant film curator at Pune’s Film and Television Institute of India.
Nair founded NFAI in 1964 which he built brick-by-brick with the acquisition of rare films prints and served as its director for a decade. Nair acquired over 12,000 films, including 8,000 Indian movies.
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