The Karnataka government on Tuesday announced that actor Puneeth Rajkumar who died of a heart attack at the age of 46 last month, would be honoured with the Karnataka Ratna award posthumously. He will be the 10th recipient of the state’s highest civilian honour.
This was announced by the Karnataka Chief Minister Bommai at ‘Puneeth namana’, a musical event organised by the film fraternity at Palace Grounds.
The event in which several songs and movie scenes from Puneeth’s movies were sung and screened, was attended by several political leaders including Siddaramaiah and Basavraj Bommai.
Bommai also said that a memorial will be constructed for the late actor, like his father Dr Rajkumar’s. While Siddaramaiah said that the late actor should be conferred with the Padma Shri award.
Meanwhile, Tamil actor Vishal requested the family members to allow him to contribute and take care of the students Puneeth Rajkumar was sponsoring.
Amid strict public entry restrictions, thousands of Puneeth fans and more than 2,000 participants have attended the event. The actor’s friends and celebrities traveled from across the country to attend the event.
Arrangements were also made for smooth traffic and special parking arrangements for VIPs and celebrities.
Family members and friends, who were seen teary-eyed during the event, informed that another event will be organised especially for Puneeth’s fans soon.
The power star Puneeth Rajkumar was the son of legendary actor Rajkumar. He was popular with Appu among his fans after the 2002 film in which he played his first lead role.
The actor was cremated with state honors last month. The actor, who was the star of films like Mourya, Arasu, Raamand Anjani Putra, is survived by wife Ashwini Revanth and has two children.