Veteran actor Shankanada Aravind is the latest member of the Kannada film industry to succumb to coronavirus. The actor was being treated at a hospital in Bengaluru for the last ten days. On Friday, he passed away due to Covid-19 complications. He was 70.
A character artist, Shankanada Aravind had carved a niche for himself in the industry. He had appeared in as many as 250 films in his career, spanning about 50 years. He made his acting debut in 1978 with Kashinath’s Aparichita. And one of his memorable performances was in director N. Lakshminarayan’s Bettada Hoovu (1985). The film had a young Puneeth Rajkumar in the lead role.
Aravind’s wife had passed away in January this year. He is survived by his three children, daughters Manasa Holla, Prarthana, and son Abhishek.
The Kannada film industry has lost a dozen of its high-profile actors and directors in the last two weeks. The film personalities who succumbed to the virus in the last few days include actor Shankanada Aravind, actor Hulivan Gangadharaiah, poster designer and director Mastan, actor-producer Dr DS Manjunath, producer Ramu, filmmaker Naveen Kumar, producer M Chandrashekhar, filmmaker Dr DS Manjunath, Ramu Kanagal, son of legendary filmmaker Putanna Kanagal, and actor Gajaraj.
On Tuesday, well-known filmmaker Renuka Sharma also breathed his last at a hospital in Bengaluru due to Covid-19 complications. He entered the film industry in the 1980s and made several memorable films, including legendary actor Dr Rajkumar’s Kaviratna Kalidasa. He is survived by his wife and two daughters.
