Malayalam actress Chithra, 56, who was known for her work in films like Amaram, Devasuram, Oru Vadakkan Veeragadha, Panjagni, Adwaitham and Nadodi, died at a private hospital in Chennai on Saturday.
According to reports, she died due to cardiac arrest at the hospital. The actress, who acted in over hundred south Indian movies, was once a busy star in Malayalam and Tamil film industries. Chithra, who first appeared in Malayalam movies as child actress, received her first hit in 1983-movie Attakalasham along with Prem Nazir and Mohanlal. However, her first movie was 1975-Tamil movie Apoorva Raagangal along with Kamal Haasan.
During her career, she had acted numerous movies with 'Big Ms' of Mollywood – Mohanlal and Mammootty. She had also shared the screen space with superstar Rajinikanth in Aval Appadithan and Oorkavalan, both Tamil movies.
Malayalam film audience cannot easily forget the charming Chithra who wowed in the song ‘Neelakuyile chollu, maarikiliye chollu...' from the 1991-movie Adwaitham. Chithra, who was then a busy actress in Malayalam, however, had disappeared from the silver screen all of a sudden due to her father's illness.
Some of her famous films include Kalikkalam, Pathamudayam, Ekalvyan, Parampara, Ee Thanutha Veluppan Kalathu, Maalayogam, Ammayane Sathyam, Padheyam, Commissioner, Aaraam Thamburan, Ustaad, and Raja Paarvai (Tamil). Her last Malayalam movie was Soothradharan.
She gave an impressive performance in the Sarath Kumar - Vijayakumar starrer Tamil movie Cheran Pandiyan, directed by KS Ravikumar.
She was fondly called as 'Nallennai Chithra' after she got featured in the advertisement of an oil company. Chithra's husband Vijayaraghavan is a businessman. They have a daughter named Mahalakshmi. The funeral will be held at Saligramam in Chennai on Saturday evening.
