Actor Usha Nadkarni has spent decades building an impressive career across Marathi and Hindi films, television and theatre. Although the character of the strict Savita Deshmukh in the TV soap Pavitra Rishta alongside Sushant Singh Rajput and Ankita Lokhande is remembered by fans throughout the nation, her career path has not always been an easy one. Whether it be financial problems, or other personal struggles, the veteran actor recently recalled some of her most significant life choices and revealed why she has never accepted any Lifetime Achievement Award.
Why she refuses Lifetime Achievement Awards
During an interview with Rajshri Marathi, Usha Nadkarni revealed that she is not inclined towards taking Lifetime Achievement Awards since she feels that her acting career has only just begun. “I won’t even accept Lifetime Achievement awards. Zee gave them to younger girls but not me, because they know I’ll just keep working! I have no space for awards anyway. I’m not old; just my age has increased. I want to keep working,” she said.
Usha Nadkarni revealed that despite not knowing about many things professionally, she still manages to do everything herself. She further added that she has never kept accounts, like her parents, and has never employed anyone for management or PR. To her, hard work will talk for itself and if there are people who wish to work with her, they will find their way to her.
Additionally, she has never asked for vanity vans on sets; she still remembered one such incident where the vanity van which was given to her had a non-working air conditioning system and a defective latch. Reflecting back to the early days of her career in the industry, she remembered how actors used to change clothes in tin sheds or tempos, without any complaints, because people were much more adjustable than they are now.
Buying her own home at 70
She also shared about buying her first house when she was 70 years old and expressed her fear of borrowing money that prevented her from purchasing her own house early on. “People asked why I didn’t buy one earlier. I was scared of taking a loan because if I died, people would say ‘she died leaving a loan’. Plus, I worked in Marathi, where the pay is less. Even when I did Hindi TV, the pay was sometimes very low. My first ever earning in this field was ₹25,” she added.
About Usha Nadkarni
Usha Nadkarni has enjoyed a career spanning nearly seven decades across theatre, Marathi cinema, Hindi films and television. Along with memorable performances in projects like Pavitra Rishta, she has remained active in entertainment through reality shows as well. She was one of the oldest contestants on Bigg Boss Marathi in 2018 and later appeared on Celebrity MasterChef in 2025, proving that even today, she has no plans of slowing down.
