Rajinikanth, Jr NTR attend Karnataka Ratna Award Ceremony to honour Late Kannada superstar Puneeth Rajkumar
Karnataka Ratna Award Ceremony: The event was held in Bengaluru's Vidhana Soudha. The megastars like Rajinikanth and Jr NTR were seen in the photos wearing traditional whites and standing beside Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.
FollowOn Tuesday (Nov 01), Rajinikanth attended the Karnataka Ratna Award event in the state to honour late actor Puneeth Rajkumar. The Karnataka government honoured late actor Puneeth Rajkumar, who died in October of last year after suffering a heart attack. Jr NTR, an actor, also attended the function. The event was held in Bengaluru's Vidhana Soudha. The megastar can be seen in the photos wearing a traditional white costume and standing beside Jr NTR and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.
Late Kannada cinema legend Puneeth Rajkumar was conferred with Karnataka’s highest civilian award the ‘Karnataka Ratna’ posthumously on Tuesday, on the occasion of the 67th Kannada Rajyotsava (the state formation day). Film stars Rajinikanth and Junior NTR were chief guests at the event along with Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who conferred Karnataka Ratna on Puneeth Rajkumar.
Also Read: Here's what Aishwarya Rai Bachchan did on her 49th birthday; check out the pictures
The late actor's wife Ashwini Puneeth Rajkumar accepted the Karnataka Ratna award, which included a complete silver plaque and a 50 gramme gold medal, in the presence of his actor brother Shivarajkumar and other family members.
During the event, Rajinikanth got emotional as he remembered Puneeth as a “God’s child". “In Kali Yuga, Appu (Puneeth) is like Markandeya, Prahlada, Nachiketa. He’s a God’s child. That child lived among us for some time. He played with us and made us laugh. And again, that child went back to God. His aatma is with us,” Rajinikanth said.
The legendary actor also explained why he was unable to attend Puneeth's burial last year. Rajinikanth stated that when Puneeth Rajkumar died, he had had surgery and was in the critical care unit (ICU). He said that he was not informed about Puneeth's death for three days due to his health at the time. Even if he had been in good condition at the time, the actor stated he would not have travelled to Bengaluru to witness Puneeth's deadly bones. "I would never want to forget that child's lovely face," he continued.
Also Read: Who was rapper Takeoff, the third member of group Migos shot dead in Houston
Puneeth, also known as 'Appu' and 'power star' by his admirers, had his cinematic debut at the age of six months and went on to win a national award as a child artiste for the film 'Bettada Hoovu.' He subsequently re-emerged as a main actor in 2002, appearing in 29 films and delivering some of the biggest successes in Kannada film history.
