Actor Prateik Smita Patil used Father’s Day to pay tribute to the man he credits as his true father figure. On June 21, he shared a photograph with his late maternal grandfather, Shivajirao Girdhar Patil, on Instagram. The post was warm and personal. He did not mention his biological father, veteran actor Raj Babbar, at any point in the caption.
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What Prateik wrote
Prateik shared a picture with his grandfather and wrote: “Happy Father’s Day to my reason, my godfather. Words cannot express how lucky I was to have you as my father and grandfather. I am forever indebted and grateful for your love and the years I spent with you in this physical world.”
The caption was brief but loaded. Calling Shivajirao his “reason” and “godfather” reflects the role the older man played in shaping his life.
The man behind the post
Shivajirao Girdhar Patil was born on March 5, 1925, and was an Indian social activist and politician from Maharashtra. He took part in the Indian independence movement from a young age and served as a member of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, Maharashtra Legislative Assembly, and the Rajya Sabha for one term. In 2013, the Government of India awarded him the Padma Bhushan, the country’s third highest civilian honour.
He was the father of actress Smita Patil. After Smita died in childbirth in 1986, it fell to him and his wife Vidyatai Patil to raise her newborn son. Shivajirao passed away on July 22, 2017. He was 92.
For Prateik, this was not just a grandfather. It was the person who stepped in when no one else did.
Life shaped by loss
Prateik was born on November 28, 1986. His mother, actress Smita Patil, died shortly after due to complications during childbirth. He was raised by his maternal grandparents in Mumbai.
Smita Patil died from puerperal sepsis on December 13, 1986, at the age of 31. Prateik was only fifteen days old. His maternal grandparents took him in and raised him as their own.
In interviews, Prateik has said he had a strained relationship with his father growing up, describing Raj Babbar as “always busy with his other family.” He had also said at one point that the two later reconciled as adults, though events in recent years have told a different story.
The fracture with the Babbar family
The estrangement between Prateik and the Babbar side of the family became public knowledge in early 2025. Prateik married actress Priya Banerjee on February 14, 2025, at Smita Patil’s home. The Babbar family was not invited to the wedding.
Arya Babbar, Prateik’s half-brother, expressed shock and hurt over the exclusion. He said, “Not inviting our Papa, his Papa (Raj Babbar), how can he do this? Papa is very, very hurt.”
The controversy did not end there. In March 2025, Prateik changed his name from Prateik Patil Babbar to Prateik Smita Patil.