Veteran Kannada Actress Leelavathi Passes Away, CM Siddaramaiah Mourns

Leelavathi, a legendary Kannada actress, died on Friday. Her age was 85.

Leelavathi has been in more than 600 films, many of which are box office hits.

Source : X/@siddaramaiah

New Delhi: Leelavathi, a renowned Kannada actor who had a diverse filmography in Tamil and Telugu, died on Friday evening at a private hospital in Nelamangala, a suburb of Bengaluru. He was 85 years old. She passed away after being taken to a private hospital due to age-related illnesses.

At the age of sixteen, Leelavathi made her acting debut. She co-starred with notable actors including Sivaji Ganesan, Gemini Ganesan, N T Rama Rao, Dr. Rajkumar, and M G Ramachandran.

Chief Minister of Karnataka mourned the loss of the legendary singer. 

ಕನ್ನಡ ಚಿತ್ರರಂಗದ ಹಿರಿಯ ನಟಿ ಲೀಲಾವತಿ ಅವರ ಅಗಲಿಕೆಯ ಸುದ್ದಿ ನೋವುಂಟುಮಾಡಿದೆ. ಕಳೆದ ವಾರವಷ್ಟೇ ಅವರು ಅನಾರೋಗ್ಯಕ್ಕೀಡಾದ ವಿಚಾರ ತಿಳಿದು ಅವರ ಮನೆಗೆ ಭೇಟಿನೀಡಿ ಆರೋಗ್ಯ ವಿಚಾರಿಸಿ ಪುತ್ರ ವಿನೋದ್ ರಾಜ್ ಅವರೊಂದಿಗೆ ಮಾತನಾಡಿದ್ದೆ.

ಹಲವು ದಶಕಗಳ ಕಾಲ ತಮ್ಮ‌ ಮನೋಜ್ಞ ಅಭಿನಯದ ಮೂಲಕ ಪ್ರೇಕ್ಷಕರನ್ನು ರಂಜಿಸಿದ್ದ ಲೀಲಾವತಿ ಅವರು ಗುಣಮುಖರಾಗಿ… pic.twitter.com/5D9orugWet

— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) December 8, 2023

Leelavathi was born as Leela Kiran in Belthangadi, Dakshina Kannada district. She is famous for her roles in 'Bhakta Kumbara,' 'Santha Thukaram,' 'Bhatka Prahlada,' 'Mangalya Yoga,' and Mana Mechchida Madadi'.

The government of Karnataka presented Leelavathi with the Dr. Rajkumar Lifetime Achievement Award in the year 2000.

She is survived only by her son Vinod Raj. He began his acting career in 1987 with the film Dance Raja Dance.