Fans of Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar mourned his death as they thronged the Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru, where his remains have been kept.

Rajkumar died in Bengaluru on Friday after suffering a heart attack. He was 46 years old.

His death sent shockwaves across the country with several politicians, actors, filmmakers and lakhs of fans paying tribute to him.

Rajkumar’s funeral will be held on Sunday, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said. The actor’s daughter is scheduled to arrive in Bengaluru by 7 pm on Saturday.

“As per our tradition, we don’t perform funeral after sunset,” Bommai said, according to ANI. “His last rites will be performed at Sree Kanteerava Stadium in Bengaluru tomorrow [Sunday].”

Fans gather at Kanteerava stadium to pay their last respects to the actor. (Credit: PTI)
Friends and fans mourn the death of Kannada film actor Puneeth Rajkumar at the Kanteerava Stadium, where his mortal remains are kept, in Bengaluru on Friday. (Credit: PTI)

A video on Saturday showed fans pouring in to see the actor.

On Friday, hundreds of Rajkumar’s fans had gathered at the Vikram Hospital where he died.

Puneeth Rajkumar's fans wait outside Vikram Hospital in Bengaluru after he was admitted there on Friday. (Credit: Manjunath Kiran/ AFP)
Fans prayed outside Vikram Hospital on Friday after hearing Puneeth Rajkumar had suffered a heart attack. (Credit: Manjunath Kiran/ AFP)

Telugu Desam Party leader and actor Nandamuri Balakrishna, the son of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister NT Rama Rao, was seen paying his tributes to Rajkumar.

Fans broke down after the actor’s death was announced.

Fans outside Vikram Hospital weep after hearing about the actor's death. (Credit: PTI)

Fans also paid their tributes to the actor in cities outside Bengaluru.

Fans and employees pay their tribute to the actor outside Vijaynagar post office. (Credit: Aravind JP/ Twitter)
Fans pay tribute to Puneeth Rajkumar in Vijayapura district in Karnataka. (Credit: Guru S Hugar/ Twitter)

Several personalities posted their photos with Rajkumar, mourning his death. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was one of them.

“A cruel twist of fate has snatched away from us a prolific and talented actor, Puneeth Rajkumar,” Modi wrote on Twitter. “This was no age to go. The coming generations will remember him fondly for his works and wonderful personality. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoles the death of Rajkumar and posts a photo of him along with the actor on Twitter. (Credit: Narendra Modi/ Twitter)
Congress member Lavanya Ballal with the actor. (Credit: Lavanya Ballal/ Twitter)

An optical shop owner decorated the shutter of his establishment with an illustration of the actor. Puneeth Rajkumar donated his eyes after his dead, as his father, iconic actor Rajkumar, had done.

Puneeth Rajkumar, also known as “Appu” by his fans, was the youngest son of Kannada superstar Rajkumar and producer Parvathamma. He had acted in more than 29 Kannada movies as the lead and had also worked as a child actor, reported News18.

His films include Appu (2002), Abhi (2003), Veera Kannadiga and Mourya (2004), Aakash (2005), Ajay (2006), Arasu and Milana (2007), Vamshi (2008), Raam (2009), Jackie (2010), Hudugaru (2011), Raajakumara and Anjani Putra (2017).