Filmmaker K Bhagyaraj died on June 27 at the age of 73 from a cardiac arrest. His son, actor Shanthnu Bhagyaraj, thanked Tamil Nadu chief minister and actor C Joseph Vijay for standing by the family in happiness and grief. He also thanked him for sending off his father with state honours.
Shanthnu says Vijay stood by him in happiness and grief
Beginning his note in Tamil by addressing him as the Honourable CM but ending the note by calling him Vijay anna (elder brother), Shanthnu posted pictures on X (formerly Twitter) with Vijay from his father’s funeral. He wrote, “How could I possibly confine my gratitude to you within the bounds of mere words? Truly, this is a debt of gratitude that will endure as long as I live. You inaugurated my joyous wedding day by personally handing over the taali (mangalsutra); I have not yet finished thanking you for that alone.”
“And then, when you came to offer solace upon my father’s passing—that tragic, sorrowful day of my life—I was deeply moved to see you set aside your official stature and humbly kneel to comfort my mother,” further wrote the actor, adding, “State honours! To be accorded respect even in death is a monumental privilege for an artist. I shall remember with gratitude, until my own final moments, the majestic honour—befitting his name—that you bestowed upon my father. What more is there to say for now? Heartfelt gratitude, offered with folded hands.”
Shanthnu mourns his father’s passing
After the funeral, Shanthnu also posted a picture with Bhagyaraj to celebrate his legacy. “The film industry was once solely my father’s world; later, it expanded to become my own—growing into a close-knit family and evolving into a cherished bond,” he wrote.
He thanked everyone who stood by him and the rest of the family, writing, “To the legends of the film industry and all my friends—who were, are, and will always be there for me: acting as loving hands to hold when I lost my father (like a banyan tree that fell before its aerial roots could become trees themselves), serving as the solid ground that steadied my faltering steps, and acting as a surrogate heart beating for me when my own felt ready to burst—what else can I offer but my heartfelt gratitude?”
Bhagyaraj was cremated with full state honours at the Besant Nagar electric crematorium on Sunday. Vijay, Rajinikanth, Suhasini, Radhika Sarathkumar, and several others attended the funeral. He is survived by his wife, actor Poornima Bhagyaraj, son Shanthnu, and daughter Saranya.