Bengaluru: A sea of grieving fans poured into Bengaluru’s Kanteerava Stadium to pay last respects to Kannada cinema’s reigning star and celebrity television host Puneeth Rajkumar, whose death at 46 after a heart attack sent shockwaves across the country. His last rites have been performed with full state honours, state minister R Ashoka told reporters. A government order said his last rites have been performed at the Kanteerava Studio where his parents Dr Rajkumar and Parvathamma were cremated. Rajkumar, who was known to be a fitness enthusiast, was rushed to Vikram Hospital after he complained of chest pain following a two-hour workout in the gym, doctors treating him said. He died shortly after.
He is survived by his wife Ashwini Revanth and 2 daughters Dhriti and Vanditha. Condolences at the death of the actor, who began his career as a child artist appearing in movies such as “Thayige Thakka Maga” and “Bhagyavantha”, poured in from political leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, colleagues in the southern film industry as well as those in Bollywood- their messages echoing his legions of fans grieving the hero who had gone too soon. Restless crowds of stunned fans milled around the hospital complex as news came in of the sudden death of the actor, the son of much-loved matinee idol Rajkumar who fast outgrew his father’s shadow to make a place for him in the Kannada showbiz industry.