Veteran actor Rajesh passes away

Actor Rajesh, who has made a mark in Tamil cinema with over 150 Tamil films to his name, passed away on Thursday morning. He was 75. The cause of his death is currently unknown.

The veteran actor landed his debut role in K Balachander's critically acclaimed Aval Oru Thodar Kathai (1974), but his first major lead role came through in Kanni Paruvathile (1979), directed by BV Balaguru and co-starring Bhagyaraj. He would later go on to reteam with the director-actor in Andha 7 Naatkal (1981) which further cemented his identity in Tamil cinema.

In his five-decade-long career, Rajesh had acted in several hit films as a key supporting star including Payanangal Mudivathillai, Thai Veedu, Achamillai Achamillai, Pudhu Pudhu Ragangal, Mahanadhi, and Jai Hind among others. In 2000s, Rajesh continued to play meaningful roles that showcased his versatality in films like Budget Padmanabhan, Dheena, Marudhamalai, Red, Kovil, Thirupathi, Ramana, Saamy, Autograph, Varalaaru, Arai En 305-il Kadavul, and Tenaliraman where he acted alongside prominent stars in the industry.

Besides Tamil films, he was also featured in a few Telugu and Malayalam films. Rajesh was also a notable dubbing artist who voiced Tamil dialogues for notable Malayalam stars like Murali and Nedumudi Venu.

He was last seen in Sriram Raghavan's Merry Christmas (2024), a Hindi-Tamil bilingual which featured Vijay Sethupathi and Katrina Kaif in lead roles.