Actor Puneeth Rajkumar died today in a Bengaluru hospital after suffering a heart attack, shocking and grieving fans and colleagues.
The actor was just 46 years old. He was brought to Vikram Hospital this morning in a “unresponsive” state, and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai tweeted in the afternoon:
“I am deeply shocked that Kannada celebrity Shri Puneeth Rajkumar died of a heart attack. The death of Kannadigar’s favourite actor, Appu, has caused enormous loss to Kannada and Karnataka and I pray that God will have mercy on his soul and give his fans the power to endure this pain.”
News agency ANI tweeted earlier today
“Actor Puneeth Rajkumar was admitted after suffering chest pain at 11.30 am. Trying our best to treat him. His condition is serious. Can’t say anything as of now. His condition was bad when brought to hospital, treatment on in ICU: Dr Ranganath Nayak, Vikram Hospital, Bengaluru.”
The hospital also said that the actor had been brought in unresponsive but that doctors were “trying (their) best to treat him.”
Outside the hospital, there were reports of hundreds of fans and a police presence, as well as stories of stores closing and traffic congestion in Bengaluru.
Chiranjeevi, Lakshmi Manchu, Mahesh Babu, Sudheer Babu, Dulquer Salmaan, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Pooja Hegde, Hansika, Sonu Sood, and a slew of other celebs have paid tribute to Puneeth Rajkumar on Twitter.
Heartbreaking
“Shocking, devastating and heart-breaking,” tweeted Chiranjeevi. Lakshmi Manchu wrote: “This can’t be true! How can this be?” Mahesh Babu described Puneeth Rajkumar as “One of the most humble people I’ve met and interacted with.” “This hurts so much,” tweeted Prithviraj Sukumaran.
About Puneeth Rajkumar
Puneeth Rajkumar was the son of famous actor Rajkumar, and he died at the age of 46. Fans dubbed him “Appu” and “Power Star” following the 2002 film in which he made his first main part. Shiva Rajkumar, Puneeth’s older brother, is also a well-known actor.
Puneeth was born in Chennai and began his career as a child actor when he was cast in the 1976 movie Premada Kanike and Aarathi at the age of six months.
In addition to the successful film Appu, he has 29 film credits as a lead actor, including Mourya, Arasu, Raam, and Anjani Putra.
He was also a vocalist who was well-known for his dancing abilities.
Puneeth made his television debut in 2012 as the host of Kannadada Kotyadhipathi, Kannada’s version of Who Wants To Be A Millionaire. Puneeth Rajkumar is survived by a wife and two children.
