Obituary: Rajkumar

The film star Rajkumar, who has died of cardiac arrest aged 76, worked with more than 75 directors, in more than 200 films in a five-decade career. He was a cult figure in the south-west Indian state of Karnataka: admirers installed statues of him in their household shrines, left him tributes of milk and honey - as they would with Hindu gods - cycled for miles for the openings of his Kannada-language films, and rioted when sold-out signs appeared outside cinemas. For many fans, the storyline did not matter. To some his movies were about ritual; to others a religious event. A teetotal non-smoker and always a good guy, he appeared in historical epics, mythological dramas, family stories and action movies. In films that advocated timeless Indian values, he mixed subtle acting, spontaneous style and a flair for making his creations real. But in 2000, he was kidnapped, with four members of his family, in the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu by the bandit Koose Muniswamy Veerappan. Rampaging fans targetted Tamil Nadu-registered vehicles, plastered buildings with Rajkumar posters and yellow and red flags - and effectively shut down Bangalore, the Karnataka capital. Some diehards proposed to go into the jungle and rescue him. Veerappan put out a list of astronomical demands in return for the release of the king of Kannada films. The very survival of the regional government would have been threatened if anything had happened to the actor. After 108 days in the jungle bordering the two states, his release was negotiated by the police. Alighting from the rescue helicopter, and having paid respect to the Karnataka soil, Rajkumar announced that the abduction underlined the need for Tamil-Kannadiga unity: the actor, already an icon, now became a symbol of Karnataka's people and, unintentionally, a spokesman for Kannada consciousness. But then he never acted in any other language - and had even refused to work in the Hindi movie Coolie (1983) featuring the huge star Amitabh Bachchan. Born Muthuraj Singanalluru Puttaswamayya at Singanallur in Tamil Nadu, he was the son of a well-known stage actor with the Gubbi Veerana troupe, and toured the countryside with his parents. Aged nine, he abandoned his schooling for the theatre. One day in the early 1950s, the director HLN Simha spotted the young man at a bus station, renamed him Rajkumar (prince) and cast him as a Lord Shiva devotee who overcomes the severest of tests in Bedara Kannappa (1954). The film changed the direction of Kannada cinema and established Rajkumar. It was a role he pursued for years, as a historical, divine or mythological character - and sometimes all three at once. The bulk of his work was of epic proportions, geared to a populist, regional-chauvinist version of Karnataka's history centred on resistance to north Indian encroachment. Rajkumar did edge into other genres - in Jadarabale and Goa Dalli CID 999 (both 1968), he even essayed an Indian James Bond role. But it was parts as a village simpleton that bonded him with the masses. The enduring image of Rajkumar, riding a buffalo, singing a popular song, in Sampattige Saval (1976) was about the reality of rural India. As a movie singer he won a national award for his rendition of Naadamaya ee Lokavella, in Jeevana Chaitra (1994). An attempt to retire in the 1990s led to protests, suicide threats and - after some years - Shabdavedhi (2000), another runaway success. Soft-spoken, humble and modest, he attributed his success to the almighty. Unlike many contemporaries, he never entered politics, but in 1982-83 he toured Karnataka protesting against failed education reform. He was the recipient of an honorary doctorate from Mysore University. Revered by his fanbase, he was usually referred to as Annavaru (elder brother); his name was seldom used. As news of his death spread distraught fans torched buses and ripped hoardings in Bangalore. Crowds laid siege to an ambulance bearing his corpse, and fans attempted to climb in. He is survived by his wife Parvathamma, two daughters and three film star sons, Shivaraj, Raghavendra and Puneeth. · Rajkumar (Muthuraj Singanalluru Puttaswamayya), actor, born April 24 1929; died April 12 2006