Like Father Like Son: Karnataka Bids Teary Farewell To ‘Appu’ Puneet Rajkumar Like They Did For His ‘Appaji'

It is Karnataka Rajyotsava tomorrow — a day when Karnataka, especially its capital city, wears its Kannada pride on its sleeves and all its streets echo mainly the songs of ‘Annavaru’ or Dr Rajkumar.

But this year, for the last three days, unfortunately, Bengaluru is resonating pain, sorrow, and an unexplainable sense of loss, which in many parts of the city is echoing, again through the songs of the same stalwart.

On the eve of Rajyotsava, ‘Kannada nadu’ is preparing to bid a tearful farewell to the ‘youngest son’ of the greatest superstar of Kannada cinema, who literally crawled and then walked in the footsteps of his father and went on to become the real ’Rajakumara’ of the kingdom he inherited.

The news of the demise of Puneet Rajkumar, the youngest son of the legendary actor Dr Rajkumar, has left an entire state, and the cine industry of the south in shock.

For, he was all of 46, was seen singing and cheerful just a day ago with other popular actors, had tweeted a few hours ago, and was among the fittest and most agile ‘dancers’ in Kannada cinema today.

And one fine morning, just like his father, he had an uneasy moment that gave him a cardiac arrest, and in a matter of hours, has left scores of his fans and the ‘first family’ or ‘Doddamane‘ of the Karnataka film industry grieving.

Everyone from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, President Ram Nath Kovind, top central ministers to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in its Dharwad Baithak, and all top colleagues of the film industry in the south and many in Bollywood including Amitabh Bachchan offered tributes to the deceased.

A sea of followers has since reached Bengaluru and that’s also why the final rites — that were scheduled to take place on Saturday evening as Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai had earlier informed — had to be moved to Sunday morning.

For, the followers are simply flowing into the stadium where their ‘Appu’ is resting one final time. And the family has been requesting them to maintain the same sense of respect and decorum until the final rites are done, for the memories of what unfolded in the capital city during the final journey of Dr Rajkumar are still alive and traumatising.

’Appu’ was his maiden movie when he entered the film industry as an adult and since then, he has wooed audiences with his simplicity, ‘mane maga’ image — a name which has stuck with him since then.

But then, it's also the fact that despite being the ‘Doddamane Hudga’ (Heir to the Big House), he was not a ‘star’ — he was their ‘Annavaru’s son’ whom they saw growing up since he was an infant on the silver screen.

He was the youngest of the children of an iconic stalwart of Kannada cinema whose legacy of humility and worshipping ‘abhimani devaru’ (fans are God) stay unmatched and it was this legacy that ‘Appu’ inherited.

While the elder son, Shivrajkumar, has many more films to his name and a larger aura, Puneet inherited the halo of his father as the humble, simple superstar who had no airs about himself.

Born Master Lohith in 1975, his first stint with the silver screen was as a six-month-old in his father’s film Premanand Kanika, after which he was seen in 16 films. His first lead role was in 1985 film Vasantha Geethe, where he played his father’s son.

Like his father, Puneet too took to the mic and sang in many of the films he acted in. His most popular renditions that stay etched in the hearts of movie goers in Karnataka are those he sang as a child artiste.

Not many children until the late 90s would have grown up without hearing the ‘Baanadaariyalli Surya Jaari Hoda’ as a lullaby. This song was from Bhagyavantharu, a 1981 film that again saw Puneet in the lead role.

His 2002 debut as ‘Appu’ was his second innings on the silver screen and was also a super hit with the film running for 200 days. He also sang his first song Taliban alla alla in the film which went on to be a popular hit number.

Since then there was no looking back as ‘Appu‘ carved a niche for himself and became the ‘Power Star’ of Kannada cinema. He clearly stayed away from the genre of cinema that was beginning to raise its head — gangster movies with minimum storyline, maximum action and a lot of violence. That was something his brother Shivrajkumar actively indulged in.

He was a complete package for the family-entertainment genre, whose stories had a substratum of the victory of the righteous over evil, and with good dancing skills, he did his stunts himself. With an ’ever-smiling’ face, he also kept the same image off-screen too.

He rose as the ‘son’ that most people sought to have — a chocolate boy meets action hero. In the psyche of the state, the child they had seen growing up — who while being the son of the biggest cinematic icons — had now come of age.

And more importantly, he was taking ahead his father’s cinematic legacy of wholesome entertainment and righteous storylines.

An era of good music and great lyrics was unfolding in Kannada cinema with the likes of a Yogiraj Bhat, and Jayant Kaikini among others creating memorable melodious ‘simple and sentimental’ songs that were taking the state by storm with an unprecedented hit in ’Mungaru Male’.

Puneet’s ‘Rajakumara’ was the one to beat its record and become the highest grossing Kannada film.

He hosted the Kannada Version of KBC in 2013 which took him to people’s living rooms and boosted his endearment quotient.

His brand associations were numerous, but he volunteered to be the brand ambassador for the state-owned KMF milk diary for free — As a continuation of his father‘s legacy, he was vocal about various social causes, had lent his voice too to many.

His philanthropic activities too are being praised all over social media post his sudden demise.

‘This was no time to go’ echo the sentiments of one and all, as they prepare for his final journey to Kanteerava studio, where he will be laid to rest next to his parents Rajkumar and Parvathamma.