Veteran Malayalam actor KPAC Lalitha passes away

Renowned Malayalam film and stage actor KPAC Lalitha passed away at the age of 74 on Tuesday at a hospital in Kerala's Kochi.

Kochi (Kerala): Noted Malayalam film and stage actor KPAC Lalitha passed away on Tuesday. Lalitha, 74, died at a Kochi hospital after a prolonged illness.

She has won two National Film Awards for Best Supporting Actress along with four Kerala State Film Awards. She got the national award for the character in 'Amaram' in 1999 and for 'Shantham' in 2000.

In a career spanning five decades, she has starred in over 550 films in Malayalam and Tamil. She has held the position of the Chairperson of Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy for five years. Born as Maheswari Amma in Kayamkulam of Alappuzha on February 25, 1947, the actress had joined K.P.A.C (Kerala People's Arts Club), a prominent drama troop in Kerala.

She was then given the screen-name Lalitha and later when she started acting in movies, the tag K.P.A.C was added to her name. She was married to the late Malayalam filmmaker Bharathan. Siddharth, her son is also a filmmaker and actor in Malayalam cinema and has a daughter also.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has expressed his condolences on the death of Lalitha. In his condolence message, Lalitha has become part of the history of an era, penetrating the hearts of different generations with her acting skills.

The Chief Minister recalled her contribution as chairperson of Kerala Lalitha Sangeetha Nataka Akademi and said that she has always been associated with the progressive movement.

Opposition leader V D Satheesan has condoled the demise of KPAC Lalitha and said she was a unique genius in Malayalam cinema and drama.

"They made each character unique with her extraordinary acting skills. As an artist, she has offered extreme justice to her characters. She was a school of natural acting. he said.