Amitabh Bachchan on Puneeth Rajkumar's death: Shocking, can't put grief in words
Mumbai, Oct 30: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has paid a tribute to Kannada star Puneeth Rajkumar, saying that his sudden death following a heart attack was shocking.
Puneeth, the 46-year-old powerstar known for films such as Appu , "Veera Kannadiga" and Maurya", died in a hospital in Bengaluru following a massive heart attack.
He was the son of matinee idol the late Rajkumar and Parvathamma.
Bachchan took to his blog post late Friday evening and wrote he was saddened by two deaths of close ones -- Puneeth and that of a family friend.
"There have been two deaths of the near and dear since the morning and there is a grief that cannot be put in words. One of them, the news has been shocking.
"Puneet Rajkumar, the younger son of the legendary icon of Kannada cinema , Raj Kumar and a star in his own right , passed away today. He was just 46 years, and this has put all of us in great shock. The family of late Raj Kumar have ever been extremely close. My prayers condolences," Bachchan wrote.
The 79-year-old blogged that the other person who died was the mother of a family friend.
Puneeth, who was known to be a fitness enthusiast, was rushed to Vikram Hospital after he complained of chest pain following a two-hour workout in the gym, doctors treating him said. He died shortly after.
His death was mourned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin and Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan, among others.
Several big names from the South film industry, including veteran actor Chiranjeevi, Mahesh Babu, Siddharth, as well as names from Bollywood like Ajay Devgn and Sanjay Dutt, also paid tributes to the actor.
Puneeth began his career as a child artist appearing in movies like "Thayige Thakka Maga", "Vasantha Geetha" and "Bhagyavantha".
He made his debut as a leading man with 2002 movie "Appu" and followed it up with movies like "Abhi", "Veera Kannadiga" and "Maurya", "Ajay" and "Arasu".
T 4079 - .. a day of remorse and prayer .. two close to the family passed away today .. it is too dark ..
— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) October 29, 2021
Actor Chetan Kumar Ahimsa shared the news about the eyes donation and tweeted:
While I was at hospital to see Appu Sir, a medical group came to remove his eyes in 6-hour window after death
— Chetan Kumar Ahimsa / ಚೇತನ್ ಅಹಿಂಸಾ (@ChetanAhimsa) October 29, 2021
Appu Sir—like Dr Rajkumar & @NimmaShivanna—donated his eyes
Following in their footsteps & in Appu Sir’s memory, we must all pledge to donate our #eyes as well
I do so pic.twitter.com/MsNAv5zGZC
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
