Mumbai, April 23: The body of 41-year-old Jiban Patra, actress Priyanka Chopra’s assistant, who passed away in United States, was brought to his Mumbai home on Tuesday morning.

Patra, a native of Balasore in Odisha, was part of the entourage travelling with Chopra for an award show to Los Angeles.

While the rest of the group travelled to Canada, Patra had to stay back at an LA hotel, as he could not obtain a Canadian visa.

On their return, Patra was found dead in the hotel room on April 7, which initial investigations by the LA police reveal could have been caused by a heart attack, his family was told.

Family members of Patra, who had given the authorisation to members of Chopra’s team to bring the body back, received it at the international airport and brought it to their Malad home for final rites.

Patra, who left his home in Balasore after finishing college, came to Mumbai and was employed as a spot boy and driver with stars such as Aishwarya Rai, Karan Johar and now, Priyanka Chopra, his family members said.

Chopra, along with her mother and employees, called on the bereaved family, including Patra’s wife Meenakshi and two children, Sonali, 9, and Karan, 3.

“We are in talks with the family regarding financial assistance to them, but we would not like to discuss it,” said a member of her staff, who added that the expense of bringing Patra’s body to Mumbai from LA was taken care of by Chopra.

After his death, the process of bringing his body back home was delayed by talks between the family and Chopra’s staff regarding the expenses of bringing it back.

An association of Odias settled in the US called the Orissa Society of Americas, helped co-ordinate with the LA authorities and Patra’s family.

The group also made an appeal to the Indian community and created a fund in Patra’s name to provide financial assistance to the family.

Family members said Patra became the only earning member of his family after the death of his older brother four years ago and his father a year ago in Mumbai.

“He took care of his mother and the family of his older brother back home in Odisha, apart from his own family in Mumbai. With his death, the family does not have an earning member,” said Rishikesh Biswal, brother-in-law of Patra’s wife Meenakshi.