In late 1975, Kannada movie star Rajkumar was shooting for Premada Kanike, which had a few scenes with an infant. The scene kept getting delayed because the baby was sick, and it just wasn’t working out with the other babies. Meanwhile, Rajkumar’s wife Parvathamma used to visit the set every day with their infant son.
“He (Rajkumar) asked me if he can use Puneeth for the shoot,” Parvathamma told Ramesh Arvind on Kannada talk show Weekend With Ramesh in 2014. The mother reluctantly agreed, and six-month-old Puneeth made his first appearance in movies that lasted a few minutes.
Born on 17 March 1975, Puneeth acted in 14 films as a child artist. He bagged the National Film Award for his role of Ramu, who gives up studying to support his family, in Bettada Hoovu (1985). After Parashuram (1989), the teenage actor took a 13-year sabbatical, returning with the hugely popular film Appu in 2002. The name stuck and Puneeth is remembered to this day as Appu. The actor died of a sudden heart attack in October 2021 at the age of 46 to much outpouring of grief across the country.
The Rajkumars
The Rajkumars are Kannada cinema royalty. Puneeth was the youngest of the three sons of Dr Rajkumar, a Dadasaheb Phalke Awardee and Parvathamma, a leading producer who died in 2017.
His brothers, Shiva Rajkumar and Raghavendra Rajkumar, and several other relatives are part of the Kannada industry too — as actors or producers. The Rajkumars are to Sandalwood what the Kapoors are to Bollywood.
Before returning to work in the film industry, Puneeth tried his hand at several other businesses, including granite mining in Chamarajanagar in Karnataka.
“I tried many things and wasted money,” Puneeth said on Weekend With Ramesh. “But if there is anyone who made me responsible, it was my mother,” he added.
Fingers in many pies
Puneeth was known to cycle all the way to Mysuru from Bengaluru — about 143 km — and was a common face in several low-key cultural and community events. His workout videos were a rage but made people wonder if his excessive exercise regime caused his cardiac arrest.
His last film, James (2022), had to be completed using the voice of his brother Shivarajkumar. It grossed around Rs 150 crore at the box office as fans thronged the theatres to see their beloved Appu on screen again.
He also featured in the 2022 documentary Gandhada Gudi and showcased the rich wildlife and ecology of Karnataka.
In 2012, Puneeth published his father’s biography Dr. Rajkumar: The Person Behind The Personality. He gave the royalty he received from it to charity — mostly to schools and homes in the border areas of Karnataka. The actor, like his father, pledged to donate his eyes after death.
“He carried his chequebook when he travelled for his shoots and donated to any schools or institutions that were in dire need,” writes Sharanu Hullur, Puneeth’s biographer in Neene Rajakumara, which was published in February 2022.
Puneeth had also founded PRK Productions to encourage young talent and creative content, although most of the movies he starred in followed a typical mass-entertainer script.
“He was hesitant about getting his biography [published] because he believed he had done nothing as commendable compared to others, including his parents,” Hullur recalled.
‘End of star wars’
An avid foodie, Puneeth travelled far and wide for shoots, fitness, or to try out new foods. Half a dozen hoteliers in Karnataka say the actor would relish each morsel. There are countless videos of the actor expressing his love for food.
“Whenever he travelled on this route, for shooting or anything, he would come here or ask that food be taken to his farm,” says Lokesh, a fan of Appu and owner of a popular eatery in Bidadi on the outskirts of Bengaluru. He fondly remembers how Appu used to call him ‘Ramachari’
His hotel’s walls are covered with pictures of Appu. Lokesh wells up a little when he shows a video of Appu wishing him on his birthday.
Managers of Bengaluru’s Maratha Bhavan even placed Puneeth’s favourite dish, Kaima Unde (meatballs) on his grave. Donne-Biryani in east Bengaluru put out a ‘buy one-get one’ offer with posters of the actor when he died.
Puneeth also starred in an episode with Kripal, a popular food blogger. Few know that the Kannada actor had sung at the age of 7 — Kaanadante Maayavadanu, Namma Shiva, Kailsa Serikondanu (My lord went missing and reached Kailasa).
A personal loss
Puneeth’s death shocked the country. The actor was in the midst of an intense workout session when he suffered a cardiac arrest. The news spread fast, with hundreds and thousands crowding up near the hospital where he was admitted despite Covid restrictions, wailing and crying. Their fears came true a few hours later.
The actor’s death was taken as a personal loss in Karnataka.
Posters of Appu were plastered on anything and everything. Even today it is hard to find an auto-rickshaw without Puneeth’s pictures, and no Kannada movie begins without paying their tributes to the late actor. Statues and busts of Puneeth are more in demand compared to others, according to local sculptors in Bengaluru.
(Edited by Humra Laeeq)