Puneeth Rajkumar was and will always be the only Power Star: Sriimurali

Kannada cinema’s Power Star Puneeth Rajkumar was Appu mama to Roaring Star Sriimurali, and the duo shared a close bond not only because of the familial ties, but also because they were close in age and shared several common interests. They even worked out at the same gym. Naturally, Puneeth’s demise was difficult for Sriimurali to come to terms with; the latter still getting misty-eyed every time he speaks about the late actor.

On Sunday evening, at the pre-release event of Puneeth’s last commercial film, James, Sriimurali spoke about how he was recently asked by someone what it was about Puneeth that inspired him the most. “However much I am inspired, I will never be able to dance or fight like him. There was and will always be only one Power Star and that is our Puneeth Rajkumar. We should all take a leaf out of his admirable life. There were so many good deeds of his that remained unknown to us until his passing and it then struck us that we had a ‘god in our midst’. On March 17, when James releases, the whole world will get a darshana of this god.”

In earlier interactions during the promotions of his film Madhagaja, Sriimurali had spoken at length about how helpful and inspiring Puneeth was to him. “Appu mama was in inspiration on many fronts. I keep telling myself to stay strong and not cry, but the more I think about him and reminisce about our time together, as children, or young adults, I am overcome by a wave of emotion and can’t control myself,” he had said amid copious tears.