Chiranjeevi offers a heartfelt tribute to Puneeth Rajkumar ahead of James, says 'We always love you Appu'

Kannada star Puneeth Rajkumar was such a graceful heir to the legacy of the Rajkumar family, both in terms of his acting mettle and off-screen persona that one can't still digest the fact that he had breathed his last a few months ago. The coming weekend would be an emotional one for Puneeth's fans across Karnataka and other regions, for they'll be watching him in a commercial film, one last time, with James. Directed by Chethan Kumar, James has Puneeth paired opposite Priya Anand. The film is set to release in five languages, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Malayalam.

Ahead of the film's release in the Telugu land, veteran star Chiranjeevi paid a heartfelt tribute to the Kannada star. "You left without notice, had us shocked one morning and now, your last film, James, is gearing up for a release on March 17. The film release is leaving us with mixed emotions. We would be definitely happy to see you perform at your very best and at the same time, it pains us to think that you're not amidst us anymore. Life is probably a melange of happy and sad moments like these. James will be a great experience for many of us who love you. The memories that you have left us with, will always remain precious. Your heartfelt smile will remain with us always. We always love you Appu. Wish you the very best," he said.

James is produced by Kishore Pathikonda and is the director Chethan’s first collaboration with Puneeth. The star had almost wrapped up all the formalities pertaining to James prior to his death. The star's brothers Shivarajkumar and Raghavendra Rajkumar will appear in cameos in the film. Shivarajkumar has also dubbed for Puneeth in James. A regular collaborator with Puneeth, composer V Harikrishna has come up with the film's background score. As Chiranjeevi rightly puts it, March 17 will leave us with mixed feelings.