Personification of simplicity: Karnataka CM condoles demise of veteran Kannada actor Rajesh

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], February 19 : Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Saturday expressed condolences on the demise of veteran Kannada actor 'Kalatapasvi' Rajesh, who passed away in Bengaluru.
The Chief Minister said that the actor was a "personification of simplicity" adding that his demise is a "big loss" for the Kannada film division.
"Senior actor of Kannada film world Rajesh has left us today. He was an artist known for his mature acting. His movies are etched in our hearts. He had the talent to essay any role with consummate ease. He was the personification of simplicity and lived without any attitudes of being a big actor. His demise is a big loss for the Kannada film world. I pray to the almighty to give the strength to his family members to bear this grief," Bommai said in his condolence message.
Actor Rajesh, who won several film awards throughout his career, passed away in Bengaluru on Saturday, at the age of 89.
He was reportedly admitted to a private hospital in Bengaluru on February 9 due to respiratory and age-related ailments. Rajesh was kept on a ventilator there; however, his health deteriorated this morning.
Born as Muni Chowdappa, in Bangalore on April 15, 1932, he was very much interested in acting and acted in plays since his school and college days. After entering cinema in the 1960s, he rose to popularity as 'Kalatapasvi' Rajesh in the Kannada film industry.
He was the father of film actor Aasha Rani and the father-in-law of popular Kannada and Tamil actor Arjun Sarja. Rajesh had acted in over 150 films and in 2014, he was awarded the Dr Rajkumar Cultural Endowment Award by the Kannada Sahitya Parishat.