Actor Nitish Veera, who was famous for playing Pandiyan in Asuran, passed away in the wee hours of Monday. The 45-year-old actor succumbed to COVID-19 in Chennai's Omandurar hospital.

Nitish made his full-fledged acting debut in 2006's Pudhupettai, directed by Selvaraghavan. He grabbed eyeballs with his performance as a North Madras gangster alongside Dhanush in the film. He then went on to play one of the principal characters in multi-starrers like Sindhanai Sei and Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu. 

In 2018, he played the eldest son of Rajinikanth in the Pa Ranjith directorial Kaala. The following year marked the busiest time of the actor's career with six releases. His role as the casteist accountant in Vetri Maaran's Asuran brought him huge recognition and praise. 

Nitish is said to have played a crucial role in the yet-to-be released SP Jananathan directorial Laabam, starring Vijay Sethupathi and Shruti Haasan. 

His death has shocked the Tamil film fraternity and many big names like Selvaraghavan have been tweeting their condolences.