Legendary Malayalam actor Nedumudi Venu, who has acted in more than 500 movies, passed away on Monday at a private hospital in Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram due to health complications. He was 73.
Nedumudi had been rushed to the hospital and admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) after he complained of uneasiness. The actor had recovered from COVID-19 a while ago.
Nedumudi, who is known for his performances in commercial and art cinema, started his career as a journalist and entered the film industry as a theatre artiste.
He later made his debut in Malayalam cinema with G Aravindan’s 1978 film Thambu and went on to play memorable roles like the music-passionate patriarch that his family wants to kill in His Highness Abdullah and the alcoholic musician in Bharatham.
Over a span of 40 years, Nedumudi worked on some of his best works including Aaravam, Oridathoru Phayalwan, Chithram, Kallan Pavithran, Thenmavin Kombath, Vandanam, Manichithrathazhu, Chandralekha, Devasuram, Ishtam, Pavithram, and Oppam.
In Tamil, he is known for his roles in movies like Indian starring Kamal Haasan and the ‘Summer of 92 (Haasya)’ segment of the Netflix anthology Navarasa.
The thespian is the recipient of three National Film Awards and six Kerala State Film Awards.
Condolences poured in for Nedumudi after news of his demise broke. Calling the actor a ‘legend’, actor Prithviraj Sukumaran wrote on Twitter, “Farewell Venu uncle! Your body of work and your expertise over the craft will forever be research material for generations to come! Rest in peace legend (sic).”
Actress Parvathy Thiruvothu took to Instagram to talk about what a “wonderful” human being Nedumudi was. “I consider myself incredibly lucky to have been able to work with this masterclass of an actor and just the most wonderful, loving human being. Charlie and now Puzhu, just before he's left us. What a terrible loss. I salute his artistry and carry within me the incredible fervour for the craft he's instilled in me as an actor through his work (sic),” she wrote.
Actor Dulquer Salmaan too expressed his grief on Instagram and said, “Rest in Peace Venu uncle! One of our finest actors and one of the kindest human beings (sic),” adding the hashtags “heartbroken” and “unfathomableloss”.