Photos: Kannada star Puneeth Rajkumar laid to rest with state honours

The last rites of late Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar were performed on October 31 with state honours at Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru.

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and a huge crowd of fans were present at the studio to pay their last respects to the late star. People gathered on terraces of the buildings around the stadium and climbed trees around it to catch a glimpse of the late Kannada actor.

Puneeth Rajkumar passed away on October 29 at the age of 46 following a cardiac arrest. He was admitted to Vikram Hospital in Bengaluru, after experiencing chest pain, where he breathed his last.

The demise of Puneeth Rajkumar took the entire country by shock and several popular actors from Mumbai and South film industry including Dhanush, Mahesh Babu, Jr NTR, Ram Charan, Amitabh Bachchan, Anil Kapoor, among others, have expressed their condolences.

Actor Chiranjeevi said it is a great loss for the Kannada film industry. Briefly speaking to the reporters on Saturday, Chiranjeevi said: “It is a great loss to Kannada film industry...losing our Appu, the Power Star of Karnataka. He was very close to our family... Many memories with him, right from his father Rajkumar’s times.”

Actor Sanjay Dutt tweeted: “You were the kindest and the simplest person I’ve met. The world has lost another gem. My heartfelt condolences to your family and friends. Om Shanti #PuneethRajkumar.”

Veteran actor Anil Kapoor also extended condolences to the late star and wrote: “Shocking & extremely sad... #PuneethRajkumar. Sending my heartfelt condolences & prayers to the family...”

Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan also condoled the untimely demise of the Kannada star. “Appu entertained us through his films, but above all else, he won us all with his warmth, sincerity and passion. Thank you Puneeth, for all the love that you showered on all of us. May your soul rest in peace, dear friend. My heartfelt condolences and prayers to the family,” the statement read.

Apart from that, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other noted politicians including Rahul Gandhi, Prakash Javdekar and Nirmala Sitharaman also mourned his death.

Son of matinee idol Rajkumar, Puneeth Rajkumar is also lovingly called ‘Appu’ and ‘Power Star’ by his fans. He was associated with the silver screen since he was a child and was also awarded the Indian National Film Award for Best Child Artist, for the movie ‘Bettada Hoovu’.

The 46-year-old actor has been the lead star in 29 films since his 2002 acting debut in ‘Appu’, with his last release being ‘Yuvarathnaa’, which came out in April earlier this year. His other notable performances include ‘Raam’, ‘Hudugaru’ and ‘Anjani Putra’.