Dr Rajkumar was the greatest showman of Indian cinema, and his natural acting was his talent, said Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on the 94th birth anniversary of the actor. "Dr Rajkumar carved a niche for himself through his stellar performances in every genre of film, from mythological to social themes. He is a legend, and he has not left us. As Vivekananda said: Death is not an end for achievers. They live on even after their death," said Bommai, who also recalled the late actor as a person who never hurt anyone.
"Even after he was kidnapped and later released by forest brigand Veerappan, Dr Rajkumar never spoke ill of Veerappan," said the chief minister, reminiscing old times.
Bommai remembered late Puneet Rajkumar as a young achiever and as a son who had imbibed the values of his great father. "The state government has already announced the 'Karnataka Ratna' award posthumously to Puneeth Rajkumar. The award ceremony will be held shortly," said Bommai.
Announcing that the work on the proposed Film City in Mysuru would begin this year, Bommai also reminded that his government had, on its own, extended the annual film subsidy for Kannada and regional films to 200 films from the earlier 125 films.
Multilingual actress Lakshmi was presented with the Dr Rajkumar award for Lifetime achievement, director S. Narayan received the Puttanna Kanagal award, and late producer G.N. Laxmipathy was honoured with Dr Vishnuvardhan Award.
