Nitin Chandrakant Desai: All About Art Director & Producer!

Nitin Chandrakant Desai was an Indian art director and producer who worked majorly in Hindi and Marathi films and television.

He is best known for his art direction work in Bollywood films such as Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Lagaan, Devdas, and Jodhaa Akbar. Nitin later turned producer with the films Desh Devi Maa Ashapura and Balgandharva.

A recipient of the National Film Award for Best Art Direction four times and Filmfare Best Art Direction Award three times, in 2005 Nitin established ‘ND Studios’, his own film and television production studio. On 2nd August 2023, Nitin committed suicide by hanging at his studio.

Physical Stats

Nitin Chandrakant Desai Family

Nitin Chandrakant Desai was born on 9th August 1965 to Chandrakant Ganpat Desai and Meena Chandrakant Desai. He is married to Naina Nitin Desai, who is a film producer.

The couple is having two children, a son and a daughter, Mansi Desai. Mansi works as a production coordinator at Mold3D.

Relationships

There are no known relationships available about Nitin in public sources.

Education

Nitin did his schooling at Wamanrao Muranjan High School in Mulund, a Marathi medium school. Later, he underwent courses in photography from J.J. School of Art and L.S.Raheja School of Arts, in Mumbai.

Controversies

Reportedly, Nitin Chandrakant Desai was reeling under debts amounting to a mammoth Rs. 252 crore. Apparently, ‘ND’s Art World Pvt. Ltd.’, Nitin’s company had borrowed a sum of Rs. 185 crore through two loans from ECL Finance in 2016 and 2018.

With the turn of events, the troubles associated with repayment surfaced in January 2020. On July 25th, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) admitted a petition filed by Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Company requesting to initiate a corporate insolvency resolution process.

As per the order, the account was classified as a non-performing asset by the creditors, and the total default amount as on June 30, 2022, amounted to Rs 252.48 crore.

Nitin Chandrakant Desai Profession

In May 1987, Nitin went to Mumbai’s Film City Studios and made a switch from the 2-D format of still photography to the 3-D world of art direction. Soon, he joined as a fourth assistant under Nitish Roy, an art director.

It was for the television serial ‘Tamas’ directed by Govind Nihalani. Nitin’s next project was ‘Kabir’, a television series for which he worked for five-and-a-half years. Subsequently, Nitin associated with the series ‘Chanakya’ for the first 25 episodes and later became independent from the 26th episode onwards.

In 1993, Nitin’s first feature film, ‘Bhookamp’ was released. Directed by Gautam Adhikari, the movie was produced by Makrand Adhikari. However, Nitin was noticed for his work in the Vidhu Vinod Chopra-directed movie, 1942: A Love Story released in 1994. It was followed by films such as Parinda, Maachis, Khamoshi, Baadshah, Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar, and Raju Chacha. Nitin also worked on international projects such as Salaam Bombay!, Amok, Jungle Book, Kama Sutra, Such a Long Journey, and Holy Smoke.

In 2003, Nitin ventured into film production with ‘Desh Devi Maa Ashapura’, a devotional film. He also produced the Marathi serial ‘Raja Shivchhatrapati’ which turned out to be a big hit. The other projects produced by Nitin include ‘Balgandharva’, a biopic film, and Marathi Paul Padte Pudhe, a reality show.

In 2011, Nitin tried his hand at acting by appearing in the lead role in ’Hello Jai Hind’, a Marathi film directed by Gajendra Ahire.

Nitin Chandrakant Desai Net worth

Nitin’s main source of income was from working as an art director and producing films. Reportedly, his net worth as of 2023 stood at $20 million.

Lesser Known Facts About Nitin Chandrakant Desai

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