Anekal Balaraj, producer of Darshan's 2003 film 'Kariya', passes away in road accident

Kannada film producer Anekal Balaraj, credited with films like 'Kariya', 'Kempa', and others, passed away earlier today (May 15th) in a road accident. 58-year-old Balaraj is said to have met with the accident in J.P. Nagar of Bengaluru and was soon rushed to a hospital for treatment where he, unfortunately, succumbed to his injuries. 

According to the latest report, Mr. Anekal Balaraj met with the accident while on his morning walk on Sunday, May 15th. He was taken to a nearby hospital for immediate care but the accident had caused a fatal injury to his head that eventually led to his passing. Actor Darshan, who fondly remembers him for bankrolling 'Kariya', shared a heartfelt tweet earlier today to mourn the loss of Anekal Balaraj.

"Mr. Anekal Balaraj, who had served as the producer of my film Kariya, has left us today. I pray to the almighty to give his family the strength to overcome his loss. Om Shanti," wrote Darshan in his tweet. 

Anekal Balaraj entered the film industry with 'Kariya' and scored a massive hit right away. The film also marked Jogi Prem's debut and stands tall even today as one of the best successes of Kannada cinema of this century. Following a big opening in 2003, Kariya ran to packed houses for many days and secured the status of being a "sleeper hit" - the film would gain further traction due to great word-of-mouth publicity and be rereleased in theatres soon after. Darshan, who had made quite an impression the previous year with 'Majestic', rose to further heights with Kariya. The film also starred Abhinayasri.

Anekal Balaraj would soon launch his son Santhosh Balaraj as a bonafide Kannada hero and produce films like 'Kariya 2', 'Kempa', and others for the latter. The father-son duo was working on another film 'Berklee' and the film is expected to release soon.