Lagaan, Jodhaa Akbar art director Nitin Desai dies by suicide at 57

Nitin Desai, a four-time National Award winner for Best Art Direction, was found dead at his ND Studio in Karjat.

Noted art director Nitin Desai has died. The police is yet to share further details about the cause of his death. He was found dead at his N D Studio in Karjat on Wednesday morning. However, the initial reports suggest that he died by suicide. Further details about the cause of death are yet to be shared.

Nitin Desai was a four-time National Award winner for Best Art Direction. He has worked with celebrated directors over his two-decades long career in Bollywood, including Ashutosh Gowarikar, Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Some of his notable works include Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Devdas, Jodha Akbar, Lagaan, Once Upon a Time in Mumbai and Bajirao Mastani, among others. His last project as an art director was with Ashutosh Gowarikar on the 2019 film Panipat. For his work, he was honoured by the prestigious Art Directors’ Guild Film Society and American Cinematheque in Hollywood.

BJP general secretary Vinod Tawde who was a close friend of Nitin Desai said, “I used to often speak and counsel him. I had told him on how Amitabh Bachchan had faced immense losses and come back in life again. We had told him that even if the studio was attached due to loans, he could start afresh. It’s very sad to hear about his death. I spoke to him day before.”

Besides art direction, Nitin also turned producer in 2003 with the film Desh Devi Maa Ashapura. He also produced the immensely popular Marathi serial Raja Shivchhatrapati. In 2005, Nitin had opened ND Studios in Karjat, in the outskirts of Mumbai. The studio, spread over 52 acre, has been the destination for several film sets, the most notable one being Jodha Akbar. His directorial work includes Hello Jai Hind! (2011) and Ajintha (2012).