Kannada star Puneeth Rajkumar's death on Friday left the film fraternity "shocked" and "devastated" - the actor died at a Bengaluru hospital after suffering a heart attack. He was 46. Since his death, social media has been deluged by tributes and condolence tweets, mourning Puneeth Rajkumar, from the likes of Chiranjeevi, Kamal Haasan, Mahesh Babu, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Tamannaah Bhatia, Dulquer Salmaan, among others. In his tweet, Chiranjeevi described Puneeth Rajkumar's death as a "huge loss" to the film fraternity: "Shocking, devastating and heartbreaking! Puneeth Rajkumar gone too soon. Rest in Peace! My deepest sympathies and tearful condolences to the family. A huge loss to the Kannada / Indian film fraternity as a whole. Strength to all to cope with this tragic loss!"
Describing Puneeth as his "younger brother," Kamal Haasan wrote: "The demise of my dear younger brother Puneeth Rajkumar was most unexpected.We were mutually very fond of each other. My deepest sympathy to his family and his fans in Karnataka."
Superstar Mohanlal, who shares a close rapport with the late actor's family, still finds it "hard to believe": "The loss of Puneeth Rajkumar has come as a terrible shock. I still find the news hard to believe. It feels as though I have lost a younger brother. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family with whom I share a close bond. I wish them strength and comfort to cope with this loss."
"It is shocking and heartbreaking to hear this news!! May his soul rest in peace," tweeted Nagarjuna.
"Shocking and heart-breaking to know that Puneeth is no more. It is a huge loss for the film fraternity," tweeted Mammootty:
Mourning Puneeth Rajkumar, Mahesh Babu tweeted: "Shocked and deeply saddened by the tragic news of Puneeth Rajkumar's demise. One of the most humble people I've met and interacted with. Heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones."
An emotional tweet from Prithviraj Sukumaran read: "This hurts so much! Rest in peace superstar! May the family, friends and the millions of fans have the strength to tide through this sorrow!"
Dhanush tweeted several broken hearts, in the memory of his "friend" Puneeth Rajkumar:
In his tribute, Mammootty's son actor Dulquer Salmaan described Puneeth Rajkumar as "One of the kindest and warmest actors/gentlemen," and added: "Praying to the almighty to give Puneeth Sir's family, friends and his ocean of fans the strength to cope with this irreplaceable loss."
Actresses Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Tamannaah Bhatia, Parvathy, Pooja Hegde, Hansika Motwani and Lakshmi Manchu mourned Puneeth Rajkumar in heart-wrenching tweets. "Gone too soon," posted Samantha. "Shocked, saddened and in loss of words," Tamannaah's tweet summed up the general emotion on social media. "I just can't process this!" added Hansika Motwani.
R Madhavan poured his heart out in a tweet, writing: "Gone - one of our kindest, nicest and noble soul. I don' know what I am feeling. I am feeling so devastated. Brother you have left us very confused and heartbroken. The heavens are brighter today. I am still hoping this is not true". Sonu Sood tweeted: "Will always miss you my brother."
Actor-turned-politician Khushbu Sundar paid tribute to Puneeth Rajkumar with a photo of the late Kannada star as her profile picture on Twitter.
Actor Prakash Raj, along with filmmakers SS Rajamouli, Raj and DK, and Boney Kapoor, remembered Puneeth Rajkumar in the fondest of words: "Gone too soon my dear Appu," read Prakash Raj's tweet.
Tweets of condolence, mourning Puneeth Rajkumar, also arrived from the likes of Varun Tej, Arya, Tovino Thomas, Ram Pothineni, Gautham Karthik, Manobala, among others. "Shell shocked," read an excerpt from Varun Tej's tweet. Actor Siddharth added: "I cannot process this."
On Friday morning, Puneeth Rajkumar had been taken to Vikram Hospital in an "unresponsive" condition after he suffered a cardiac arrest; in the afternoon, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai tweeted: "I am deeply shocked that Kannada celebrity Shri Puneeth Rajkumar died of a heart attack. The death of Kannadigar's favourite actor, Appu, has caused enormous loss to Kannada and Karnataka and I pray that God will have mercy on his soul and give his fans the power to endure this pain."
Puneeth Rajkumar, 46, was the son of veteran actor Rajkumar. He is survived by wife Ashwini Revanth and has two children.
Post your tribute to Puneeth Rajkumar here.