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59-year-old Vishnuvardhan, a hugely popular figure in Indian cinema, died of a heart attack on 30th  December 2009.  He was en-route to hospital at the time after complaining of pains in his legs.   Such was the esteem in which the mild-mannered actor was held, that cinemas, film studios and schools were closed for two days in the southern Indian state of Karnataka to mark his death.

Thousands of fans gathered to pay their respects at the Basavanagudi National College in Bangalore where the actor's body was on public display prior to a funeral at the Abhiman studios.   Unfortunately, unrest grew amongst the crowd as it followed the processions to the college and studio, and stones were thrown at buildings and vehicles.   The disturbances prompted a public plea for order from the actress Bharathi, Vishnavardhan’s widow.  Despite her pleas, four police officers and several members of the public were injured and approximately 50 vehicles were damaged.

Vishnuvardhan was born Sampath Kuman  in Mysore in 1950.   He assumed the screen name of Vishnuvardhan upon appearing in his first film, Nagarahavu, in 1972.   He made a total of 200 films, the last of which, Apatha Rakhshaka, would be released posthumously.   In addition to a number of film awards, he was the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Bangalore University.

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