Rajesh Mapuskar: “My working collaboration started with Achyutji when I was an associate to Rajkumar Hirani on his films. I was fortunate to have directed Achyutji myself on my Marathi film Ventilator. In Spite of all his old age issues, he was the first one to arrive and the last one to leave the set during filming. He was hungry for work, eager to perform, and always looked forward to being on the film set. We bonded thicker during filming of the ventilator. From that time onward, there was one phone call I always took, no matter what was Achyutji’s. Slowly, those phones started to fade away and stopped last two years. I miss those calls. Sadly, now certain that my phone will never ring with his name flashing on my phone screen. RIP Achyutji!”
Prabhudheva: “Just heard the news after you told sir, I had the privilege of directing Achyutji in R..Rajkumar. He was always the first to arrive on the sets. It wasn’t much of a role. But he savoured every frame of what he had and made the character special. He was a true actor, not in this for fame or money. But just for the sake of being in front of the camera. Not only me my full team had a great experience working with him, because we took a scene on top of the mountain, he never complained, he came up and he gave his shot, very professional. Compare to him, our team was very young still; he respected all of us. We all enjoyed working with him.
R Madhavan: “I had the privilege of working with him in Raju Sir’s 3 Idiots. It was a very small, but Achyutji made it so interesting. His background in theatre made him a true trouper. I wish I had worked more with him. But you know how this industry is. The bond lasts as long as the shooting. Sad.”
