Fans of Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar mourned his death as they thronged the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, where his remains have been kept.
Rajkumar died in Bengaluru on Friday after suffering a heart attack. He was 46 years old.
His death sent shockwaves across the country with several politicians, actors, filmmakers and lakhs of fans paying tribute to him.
Rajkumar’s funeral will be held on Sunday, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said. The actor’s daughter is scheduled to arrive in Bengaluru by 7 pm on Saturday.
“As per our tradition, we don’t perform funeral after sunset,” Bommai said, according to ANI. “His last rites will be performed at Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru tomorrow [Sunday].”
A video on Saturday showed fans pouring in to see the actor.
On Friday, hundreds of Rajkumar’s fans had gathered at the Vikram Hospital where he died.
Telugu Desam Party leader and actor Nandamuri Balakrishna, the son of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister NT Rama Rao, was seen paying his tributes to Rajkumar.
Fans broke down after the actor’s death was announced.
Fans also paid their tributes to the actor in cities outside Bengaluru.
Several personalities posted their photos with Rajkumar, mourning his death. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was one of them.
“A cruel twist of fate has snatched away from us a prolific and talented actor, Puneeth Rajkumar,” Modi wrote on Twitter. “This was no age to go. The coming generations will remember him fondly for his works and wonderful personality. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti.”
An optical shop owner decorated the shutter of his establishment with an illustration of the actor. Puneeth Rajkumar donated his eyes after his dead, as his father, iconic actor Rajkumar, had done.
Puneeth Rajkumar, also known as “Appu” by his fans, was the youngest son of Kannada superstar Rajkumar and producer Parvathamma. He had acted in more than 29 Kannada movies as the lead and had also worked as a child actor, reported News18.
His films include Appu (2002), Abhi (2003), Veera Kannadiga and Mourya (2004), Aakash (2005), Ajay (2006), Arasu and Milana (2007), Vamshi (2008), Raam (2009), Jackie (2010), Hudugaru (2011), Raajakumara and Anjani Putra (2017).
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