John Abraham: Nana Patekar’s temper is justified

Nana Patekar is known for his short temper but his Welcome Back co-star John Abraham says he would not blame the senior actor for getting angry as he is an honest person.

“I believe he (Nana) is the most honest person in the industry… He is the most transparent man. I would not blame him for getting angry as he shows his anger when someone does wrong. So, I don’t blame him. He is a fantastic human being. He is an honest man and whatever he feels he speaks. He calls a spade a spade. There should be more Nana Patekars in the world today as that will make the world a better place. I have always had the most beautiful time working with him,” he said.

John first shared screen space with Patekar in Taxi No 9211. “He is very proud and happy for me. He told me I have come a long way. He treats me like his child..,” John added. The 42-year-old actor is the new addition to the sequel to Welcome but he felt comfortable with everyone. “I was welcome on ‘Welcome Back’ sets. It was a lot of fun as I have worked with Anil Kapoor in ‘Shootout at Wadala’, with Nana Patekar in ‘Taxi No 9211’ and in ‘Garam Masala’ with Paresh Rawal. I worked with Shruti Haasan simultaneously in ‘Ricky Handsome’ (their upcoming film),” John said.

“In a way I felt comfortable. I had not worked with Dimple Kapadia and Naseeruddin Shah… They both are very nice,” he said. As the Akshay Kumar-starrer Welcome was a huge, John said he does not feel the pressure to keep up the tag. “I did not feel the pressure as ‘Welcome Back’ starts from where the story of ‘Welcome’ ends. Akshay’s character gets married to Katrina Kaif in the film and ‘Welcome Back’ starts from there. It is a completely different story,” John said. The Madras Cafe star said he did speak to his actor friend Akshay, who was part of the original film. before doing the film. “When I told Akshay I am doing the sequel of one of his films – ‘Welcome’ he said it was a fantastic choice. Akshay was very happy that I was doing the film. We share a great relationship. I spoke to him when I signed the film. And then I spoke to him one day before the release of ‘Brothers’ (Akshay Kumar’s last release)… I think he looked extremely smart and handsome in the film,” he said.

The original film saw late Feroz Khan as don RDX. In the sequel we have Naseeruddin Shah as the new don. “He (Feroz Khan) can never be replaced but Naseeruddin Sir also gets so much to the table,” John said.