Bollywood stars express grief over Puneeth Rajkumar's demise

 Social media is flooded with condolence messages since the news of the untimely demise of Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar broke. Bollywood celebrities also expressed grief on the passing away of the 'power star'.

Actor Sanjay Dutt tweeted, "You were the most kindest and the simplest person I've met. The world has lost another gem. My heartfelt condolences to your family and friends. Om Shanti #PuneethRajkumar."

Veteran actor Anil Kapoor also extended condolences to the late star and wrote, "Shocking & extremely sad... #PuneethRajkumar. Sending my heartfelt condolences & prayers to the family..."

Actor Aditi Rao Hydari took to her Twitter and wrote, "Rest in Peace #PuneethRajkumar sir. Prayers and condolences to the family and fans for this irreplaceable loss," and added broken heart emoticons in the end of the tweet.

Veteran superstar Kamal Hassan also tweeted, "The demise of my dear younger brother Puneeth Rajkumar was most unexpected.We were mutually very fond of each other. My deepest sympathy to his family and his fans in Karnataka. #PuneethRajkumar."

Expressing condolences to the 'Appu' actor, Bollywood actor Abhishek Bachchan wrote, "Heartbreaking news! Gone too soon. #PuneethRajkumar. My condolences to his family and his fans. You will be missed."

R Madhavan who is a notable actor and worked both in Hindi and south film industry penned a moving tweet in the memory of the late star. "GONE- one of our KINDEST, NICEST AND NOBLE soul. I don' know what I am feeling . I am feeling so devastated. Brother you have left us very confused and heartbroken. The heavens are brighter today. I am still hoping this is not true," Madhavan's tweet read.

Other actors including Pooja Hegde, filmmaker Boney Kapoor, actor Tusshar Kapoor, and singer Shreya Ghoshal among others paid tribute to the late actor on social media.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other noted politicians including Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai, Rahul Gandhi, Prakash Javdekar and Nirmala Sitharaman also mourned his demise.

Son of legendary Rajkumar, Puneeth is one of the most loved actors in the South film industry. The 46-year-old star passed away following a cardiac arrest on Friday. He was admitted to a private hospital in Bengaluru after experiencing chest pain.

Fondly called 'Appu' by his fans, the actor entered the industry as a child artist. He was also awarded the National Film Award for Best Child Artist, for the movie 'Bettada Hoovu'. Later, he debuted with 'Appu' in 2002 which instantly became a blockbuster hit.

'Raam', 'Hudugaru', and 'Anjani Putra' are some of his memorable movies.