Overview
- Her death was confirmed by actor Vijay Kenkre and multiple outlets as occurring late on Tuesday, June 30, at her South Mumbai residence after a prolonged illness, with most reports giving her age as 91 and at least one outlet reporting 92.
- Mehta co-founded the influential Rangayan collective in the 1960s and introduced modernist and Brechtian techniques to Marathi stages, staging landmark productions such as Ek Shoonya Bajirao and Ajab Nyay Vartulacha.
- She moved between stage and screen as a director and actor, helming Rao Saheb (1986) and Pestonjee (1988) and appearing in films including Kalyug and Party, and she received major honours including the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, the Padma Shri and a National Film Award.
- Prominent figures including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Anupam Kher and Shabana Azmi paid tribute, her family reported she is survived by daughter Anahita Uberoi and two sons, and public details about funeral rites were pending in early coverage.
- Mehta’s long tenure leading institutions such as the NCPA, NSD and FTII and her decades of teaching and mentorship leave a legacy that could prompt retrospectives and renewed attention to experimental Marathi theatre and actor training.