What is in news : Puneeth Rajkumar, 46, one of the marquee names of the Kannada film industry and the youngest of the five children of matinee idol Dr. Rajkumar, passed away after suffering a cardiac arrest

ABOUT

• Took pride in doing his own stunts, and had trained in martial arts like Kalaripayattu to be able to do realistic action.
• Won a national award for best child artiste for his role in ‘Bettada Hoovu’ (1985).
• Was a role model for fitness buffs, and his workouts were legendary.
• In many hits, he deployed his athletic skills to full advantage.
• His ‘Rajakumara’ (2017) was the highest grossing Kannada film before it was overtaken by ‘KGF’ (2018).
• In his 29 films as hero, Puneeth played many roles —- upright official fighting the mining mafia (‘Prithvi’, 2010), NRI giving up wealth for the woman he loves (‘Arasu’, 2007), and student leader taking on the private education racket (‘Yuvarathnaa’)
• But one genre that he stayed away from was the mythological.
• Took on a role similar to Amitabh Bachchan’s and hosted the TV quiz show ‘Kannadada Kotyadhipathi’.
• opened his production house ‘PRK Productions’ that decided to back small, content-oriented films. Films such as ‘Mayabazar’, ‘French Biriyani’ and ‘Law’ were from the banner.
• Endorsed the Right to Education (RTE), Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Nandini milk, election franchise (right to vote) among other social initiatives.