NE NEWS SERVICE
CHENNAI, MAY 22
Versatile actor Sarath Babu, who has appeared in hundreds of movies in all South Indian languages and Hindi, passed away in Hyderabad on Monday morning. He was 71. Sarath Babu had been keeping unwell for the past few weeks and was undergoing treatment at the AIG Hospital in Gachibowli, Hyderabad.
He is survived by a son Gowtham and daughter Kavya with his ex-wife actress Rama Prabha and a son Sai Karthik and daughter Pallavi with another ex-wife Snehalatha.
Earlier this month, the veteran Tamil and Telugu star had become a victim of an internet death hoax. Reacting to the same, his sister had informed the media at the time that the actor was recovering slowly and recently shifted to the general room from the ICU. The family had also requested everyone to not believe unofficial news on social media.
The South star was being treated for multi-organ failure. There were reports that Sarath Babu contracted sepsis, which further affected the functioning of his kidneys, lungs, liver, and other organs. This was Sarath Babu’s second hospitalisation in recent weeks. Earlier, he was admitted to a hospital in Chennai.
Sepsis is also known as blood poisoning, and it’s a response of the immune system to an infection. If it is not treated on time, it can lead to multi-organ failure and be fatal.
Born in Andhra Pradesh he made his Tamil debut in the year 1977 with the movie ‘Pattinapravesam’ after which he shined in several leading and supporting roles in movies such as K. Balachander’s ‘Nizhal Nijamagirathu’, ‘Sattam’, ‘Annamalai’, ‘Mullum Malarum’ and many others. A veteran of over 200 films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, HIndi and Malayalam languages fans especially enjoyed his chemistry with both Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan playing their friends in many films.
Deeply saddened by the demise of versatile and talented veteran actor Sarath Babu. His talent and contributions to the industry will always be remembered. My condolences and prayers for strength to his family. Om Shanti.-Governor Ravi pic.twitter.com/cpgAMykZsS
— RAJ BHAVAN, TAMIL NADU (@rajbhavan_tn) May 22, 2023
Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi in his tribute to the versatile actor on twitter said, “Deeply saddened by the demise of versatile and talented veteran actor Sarath Babu. His talent and contributions to the industry will always be remembered. My condolences and prayers for strength to his family. Om Shanti.”
Kamal Haasan in his tribute to Sarath Babu on Twitter wrote in Tamil “A great actor and a great friend, Sarathbabu has passed away. The days of acting with him are in my mind as a shadow. Introduced by my Guru (K. Balacander) in Tamil he excelled in many timeless roles. Cinema has lost a good actor. My tribute to him.”
சிறந்த நடிகரும், அருமை நண்பருமான சரத்பாபு மறைந்துவிட்டார். அவருடன் இணைந்து நடித்த நாட்கள் என் மனதில் நிழலாடுகின்றன. தமிழில் என் குருநாதரால் அறிமுகப்படுத்தப்பட்டவர். காலத்தால் அழியாத பல பாத்திரங்களை ஏற்று சிறப்பு செய்தவர். ஒரு நல்ல நடிகரை சினிமா இழந்திருக்கிறது.
அவருக்கு என்…
— Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) May 22, 2023
Kamal Haasan and Sarath Babu have acted together in many films. including ‘Nizhal Nijamagirathu’, ‘Ninaithale Inikkum’, ‘Sippikkul Muthu’, ‘Sattam’ and ‘Aalavanthaan’.
Similarly, Sarathbabu has acted in many movies with Rajinikanth such as ‘Mullum Malarum’, ‘Velaikaran’, ‘Muthu’, ‘Baba’ and ‘Annamalai’. He has also appeared with Ajith in ‘Uyirodu Uyiraga’ and Vijay in ‘Puthiya Geethai’.
Director Hemant Madhukar, the son of acclaimed filmmaker K Babu Rao, expressed his grief over the demise of Babu. He tweeted, “It’s sad to hear the news about the demise of one of the greatest actors Sarath Babu garu. It’s a honour that he was first launched as a hero in our film #Ramarajyam 1973 in our banner #ramavijethafilms directed by my father late shri K Baburao.”
