Veteran Malayalam actress KPAC Lalitha dies at 74, condolences pour in 

Legendary Malayalam actress KPAC Lalitha, who was recently hospitalized and later shifted to her son’s house in Kochi, died on Tuesday night. She was 74. 

Born Maheshwari Amma on 25 February 1947 in Kerala's Alappuzha district, Lalitha made her mark as a theatre artiste before foraying into cinema and emerging as one of South cinema's finest actresses.

Even before her successful theatre stint, Lalitha was a passionate dancer and she had dropped out of school in class seven after enrolling in a dance academy.

The artiste starred in over 550 films and has two National awards to her name. Renowned for playing maternal roles, she made her acting debut in the Malayalam film Kootukudumbam (1969), an adaptation of the play of the same name that she had worked in. 

In 1978, she married veteran filmmaker Bharathan. She won her maiden National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1991 Malayalam film Amaram, which was helmed by her husband.

In 2000, she won another National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for the movie Shantham. 

The actress was awarded state awards for her performances in the films Neela Ponman (1975), Aaravam (1980), Amaram, Kadinjool Kalyanam (1991), Godfather and Sandhesam (1991). 

Popular celebrities such as Mammootty, Prithviraj Sukumaran and Manju Warrier have mourned the actress's demise on social media. 

Prithviraj wrote on Instagram, “Rest in peace Lalitha aunty! It was a privilege to have shared the silver screen with you! One of the finest actors I’ve known.”

Mammootty took to Facebook and paid his respects in Malayalam. 

Manju Warrier also took to Instagram to eulogize the actress in a long post, the translation of which reads, "Lost a person whom I loved like a mother. Even though I was called sister, my mother’s face is always in my heart. Although I don’t have memories of many movies together, what is left in me is her smile mixed with affection and a hug.”