Lakhs flocked to the Kanteerava Stadium on Sunday to pay their last respects to actor-politician M H Ambareesh who died on Saturday night.
Besides fans and well-wishers, several politicians and celebrities across industries queued up to pay tributes.
Shivarajkumar, Raghavendra Rajkumar and Puneeth Rajkumar visited with their families, while Tamil superstar Rajinikanth and Telugu star Chiranjeevi bade an emotional goodbye to a “wonderful human being”.
Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, JD(S) chief H D Deve Gowda, BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa, former chief minister Siddaramaiah, D K Shivakumar, S M Krishna and others visited the stadium. The day also saw a 52-year-old distraught fan of the actor killing himself by jumping in front of a moving train at Nidaghatta near Maddur in Mandya district.
Kumaraswamy said Ambareesh was a great actor and politician who offered a helping hand to many in the industry as well as general public.
Following a request from the people of Mandya, his body would be airlifted to Mandya. Kumaraswamy requested Ambareesh’s fans and followers not to resort to any extreme step.
Actor Shivarajkumar said the film industry has lost its big brother who used to address all kinds of problems of artistes. “I fear the industry has been abandoned now,” he said and added that “We have to move forward with his memories.”
Tamil superstar Rajinikanth arrived around 10 pm. A teary-eyed Rajini said he has lost a wonderful human being, his best friend and that he was going to miss him. “In the industry, there might be an actor like him, but not a person like him. He lived a king’s life. May his soul rest in peace,” he said.
Tamil actor Sarath Kumar, wife Raadhika, Suhasini, Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi, Prakash Rai, Ananth Nag, Ravichandran, Jayanthi, Hamsalekha, Doddanna and Sudeep were present. Sumalatha, his wife, was inconsolable, while son Abhishek was beside her. Around 3.40 pm, Ambareesh’s body was taken in an ambulance to HAL airport to be flown to Mandya.