TRIGGER WARNING: This article contains mention of death.Actor Punnapra Appachan has passed away. He was 77 years old. Appachan was a face people saw for many years on the big screen.Punnapra Appachan was undergoing treatment after he suffered injuries from a fall according to News 18 reports. Doctors said his death happened because of internal bleeding in the head as per the reports. The veteran actor was first admitted to Ernakulam Medical Trust Hospital. His health condition became worse while he was there. He was shifted to Vandanam Medical College Hospital. Sadly he could not recover and passed away there.
A journey that began in 1965
Punnapra Appachan acted in more than a thousand films. This itself tells the story of his long and hardworking life in cinema. He started acting in the year 1965. His first film was ‘Othenante Makan’. Sathyan played the lead role in the film.Over time, Appachan slowly became a known face. One of the roles that brought him real attention was in the film ‘Anubhavangal Paalichakal’. In this movie, he played a trade union leader. That role stayed in people’s minds. It showed how natural and strong his acting was.From small roles to strong character parts, Appachan never stopped working. He moved with time. He acted in old black-and-white films and also in new-generation cinema. Very few actors manage to do that.
Known for strong and honest roles
Punnapra Appachan was known for his villain roles and character roles. He brought honesty to every role. Even if the screen time was short, people noticed him. He acted in ‘Anantharam’ which was directed by Adoor Gopalakrishnan. This film became an important part of his career.After that, Appachan went on to act in all of Adoor Gopalakrishnan’s films. This itself shows the trust the director had in him. He was also part of the classic ‘Njaan Gandharvan’ which was directed by Padmarajan.He also acted alongside Bollywood star Dileep Kumar in the film ‘Duniya’. In that movie, Appachan played a sub-inspector. His character arrests Dileep Kumar’s role, Mohan Kumar, who is framed for murder. The shooting of this film took place in Ernakulam.
Vinayan remembers a passionate artist
Director Vinayan shared his feelings after hearing about Appachan’s death. He wrote a touching note on Facebook.Vinayan wrote, “From the era of Sathyan Master and Nazir Sir to today’s new-generation films, Appachan chettan acted across all these periods. I had met him at Udaya Studio even before I entered the film industry. Later, he acted in three or four of my films. My salutations to an artist who lived his life with great passion for acting till his very last breath.”
