Kollywood celebs mourn Pratap Pothen's demise; Kamal Haasan, Sathyaraj, Khushbu remember the actor-filmmaker

Actor-filmmaker Pratap Pothen, who carved a niche for himself with a few notable movies in Tamil and Malayalam, breathed his last today morning at his residence in Chennai. A few actors and filmmakers from both the film industries took to their social media pages to express shock and disappointment over his demise.

Kamal Haasan, who worked under his direction in films like Vetri Vizha and Daisy, remembered Pratap and posted that he has always been someone who was deeply interested in art films and literature. "He had a knack in making entertaining movies successful as well. I have witnessed it during the making of Vetri Vizha. My sincere condolences." Kamal also posted a working still clicked during the film's making.

Sathyaraj posted a short video in which he was all praise for Pratap's genuine nature and his skills. He said, "The news of Pratap's demise has left me shocked. He has been a good friend, a great filmmaker and a fantastic actor. I have acted in Jeeva and Magudam under his direction. He used to be a jovial person and someone with a childlike mindset."

Actor Srikanth, who recently acted with Pratap in Sundar C's yet-to-be-released movie Coffee With Kadhal, described him as a "wonderful, jovial, lovable person and father-friendly figure who lived like a king".

Actress Gautami, who worked under his direction in Chaitanya, mourned his demise and posted that the latter has been a "dynamic and mercurial creator, actor, director, producer".

Khushbu, one of the producers of Coffee With Kadhal for which Pratap completed shooting recently, expressed grief and tweeted, "Met him when we were shooting in Ooty. Same smile, zest for life, living every moment to the fullest, laughing, cribbing, complaining, happy all at the same time (sic)." Ace lensman PC Sreeram and Vijay Sethupathi were a few others who remembered the veteran actor-filmmaker.