Actress Ankita Lokhande on Monday mourned the passing of her Pavitra Rishta co-star Priya Marathe, who died on August 31 in Mumbai after a year-long battle with cancer.
Recalling their days on the set of the popular soap opera, Lokhande said, “Priya was my first friend from Pavitra Rishta. Me, Prarthana and Priya...our little gang… it always felt so wholesome when we were together.”
Lokhande shared that she referred to her co-stars Marathe and Prarthana Behere as ‘wedee’ in Marathi.
“Priya, Prats and I lovingly called each other wedee in Marathi, and that bond was truly special...She was there in my good days and held me through my sad days… never once missing to show up when I needed her. She never missed attending the Gauri Maha Aarti during Ganpati Bappa, and this year, I’ll pray for your soul there, my wedee… while missing you dearly,” wrote Lokhande on Instagram.
“Priya was the strongest; she fought every battle with so much courage. Losing her is a reminder that we really never know the battles someone is fighting behind their smile...Thank you for every laugh, every tear, every moment. Until we meet again,” she concluded.
Marathe shot to fame with her role of Varsha Satish in Pavitra Rishta, which also starred Sushant Singh Rajput. Besides acting, Marathe was a well-known stand-up comedian. She portrayed the character of Vidya Bali in Balaji Telefilms’ series Kasamh Se. She also appeared in Bade Achhe Lagte Hain, Bhaage Re Mann, and Season one of Comedy Circus. She was 38 at the time of her death.
Lokhande, on the other hand, recently appeared in Swatantrya Veer Savarkar, fronted by Randeep Hooda.