As the film industry mourns the death of actor-filmmaker Manobala, multi-faceted Kamal Haasan also condoled the death of the former, on social media.

“The news of the passing away of Manobala, a good friend who was a director, actor and producer, leaves me with a great sadness. He always carried the primary identity of being an enthusiast of cinema before anything else. My condolences to his bereaved family, friends and fans,” Kamal Haasan wrote on Twitter.

It is to be noted that it was Kamal Haasan who had introduced Manobala to Bharathiraja. Manobala had later joined as assistant director to the veteran filmmaker. Subsequently, he began his career with the 1979's Puthiya Vaarpugal, assisting director Bharathiraaja. Besides this, Manobala had acted in Nala Damayanthi, a film backed by Kamal Haasan’s Raaj Kamal Films International.

Having starred in more than 200 films, Manobala also had 24 films to his credit as director. His debut directorial feature was Aagaya Gangai in 1982, which starred Karthick and Suhasini in lead roles. Known for his strong comic roles, Manobala regularly collaborated with the biggest stars in Tamil cinema.

Manobala died aged 69. He is survived by wife Usha, son Harish.