Nagpur mourns passing away of Vira Sathidar

Nagpur: Thinker, writer and actor Vira Sathidar passed away on Monday night while under treatment for Covid-19 at AIIMS Nagpur. He was 62. His role in the National Film Award winning film ‘Court’ was a hit. The film was also nominated for an Oscar.
Vira, as he was known, was infected with Covid-19 a few days ago and was admitted to AIIMS Nagpur a week ago. He had developed Covid pneumonia.The last rites were performed on Tuesday afternoon. He leaves behind wife, son and relatives to mourn the loss.
For the Ambedkarite movement and people’s theatre in Nagpur and Vidarbha, Vira was much more than just a movie artist. He was a poet, lyricist, literary activist, human rights activist, writer, journalist, teacher and much more. He was actively associated with Dalit Panthers, the anti-caste movement.
Shocked to hear about Sathidar’s sad demise, ‘Court’ director Chaitanya Tamhane told PTI. “I am speechless right now. I fondly recall the time we discovered him and took him on board as the lead actor for my debut directorial. He was one of the nicest human beings I met. We have lost a talented soul,” he said.
Vira was born as Vijay Vairagade in Parsodi village near Butibori to a father who used to work as a porter at Nagpur railway station, while his mother was a construction labourer. His parents were also associated with the Ambedkarite movement and they insisted he pursue an education.
During his early days, he worked as a labourer in many factories in MIDC Nagpur. This was the period when he first came under the impression of Leftist ideology. He also worked as a journalist for a local Marathi newspaper. Later, he edited ‘Vidrohi’, a Marathi magazine.
Vira left the caste-expressing surname and took ‘Sathidar’ (comrade) as his second name, inspired by the Leftist movement. He used to write poems, songs, and literature with the same name. His songs were quite popular in ‘Ambedkari Jalsa’, a literary musical event in street play format, which is quite popular in Maharashtra.
Ambedkarite activist Nihalsingh Rathod, Mukund Adevar, Dinanath Waghmare, Republican Movement’s Naresh Wahane, Prakash Kumbhe from RPI, Rajan Waghmare from RPI-A, and many other organizations paid tributes to Vira throughout the day.
“We have lost a fatherly figure today,” said Rathod. “He was just in his sixties and will be missed badly. The news of his death, just a day before Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar’s birth anniversary, is more painful,” he added.
Theatre activist Virendra Ganvir, who was quite close to Sathidar, said, “He was like a Guru for many artists like us.”
Communist leader Raju Desale said Vira’s style of working and energy was like a youth. “He participated in every movement for the enlightenment of society. Vira Sathidar was an important link in our movement. This is an irreparable loss for the Communist Party of India,” said Desale.