Tamil actor CID Sakunthala passes away at 84

CHENNAI: Tamil actor Sakunthala, more popularly known as CID Sakunthala, passed away on Tuesday in Bengaluru following a brief illness. She was 84.

A native of Salem, Sakunthala's parents named her after the 1940 M S Subbulakshmi-starrer ‘Sakuntalai'. She got her breakthrough role in the 1970 cop-thriller ‘CID Shankar', which earned her the moniker ‘CID' Sakunthala. The film also featured Jaishankar and Thengai Srinivasan.

Sakunthala started out as a dancer and trained under the renowned Lalitha-Padmini-Ragini sisters. Her talent paved the way for her entry into Tamil cinema, where she gradually transitioned into an actor.

She has shared the screen with actor Sivaji Ganesan in blockbuster films such as ‘Padikkada Methai' and ‘Kai Koduththa Dheivam'.

Sakunthala was known for her versatility. In the movie ‘Thava Pudhalvan', she played the role of a villainous vamp. The movie, released in 1972, was directed by Mukta Srinivasan. In 1981, Srinivasan cast her again in a glamorous role opposite Sarath Babu in the movie ‘Keezh Vaanam Sivakkum'.

Seven years later, she played the heroine's mother in R C Sakthi's ‘Koottu Puzhukkal', starring Raghuvaran and Amala. Though the movie did not do well at the box office, Sakunthala's character Devaki, a woman who got involved with many men, is remembered for landing dialogues riddled with political punches scripted by Sakthi.

Sakunthala also starred in a television series before moving to Bengaluru to be with her daughter. Family sources said the last rites were performed in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Several actors and filmmakers condoled her death.

Chennai: Tamil actor Sakunthala, more popularly known as CID Sakunthala, passed away on Tuesday in Bengaluru following a brief illness. She was 84.

A native of Salem, Sakunthala's parents named her after the 1940 M S Subbulakshmi-starrer ‘Sakuntalai'. She got her breakthrough role in the 1970 cop-thriller ‘CID Shankar', which earned her the moniker ‘CID' Sakunthala. The film also featured Jaishankar and Thengai Srinivasan.

Sakunthala started out as a dancer and trained under the renowned Lalitha-Padmini-Ragini sisters. Her talent paved the way for her entry into Tamil cinema, where she gradually transitioned into an actor.

She has shared the screen with actor Sivaji Ganesan in blockbuster films such as ‘Padikkada Methai' and ‘Kai Koduththa Dheivam'.

Sakunthala was known for her versatility. In the movie ‘Thava Pudhalvan', she played the role of a villainous vamp. The movie, released in 1972, was directed by Mukta Srinivasan. In 1981, Srinivasan cast her again in a glamorous role opposite Sarath Babu in the movie ‘Keezh Vaanam Sivakkum'.

Seven years later, she played the heroine's mother in R C Sakthi's ‘Koottu Puzhukkal', starring Raghuvaran and Amala. Though the movie did not do well at the box office, Sakunthala's character Devaki, a woman who got involved with many men, is remembered for landing dialogues riddled with political punches scripted by Sakthi.

Sakunthala also starred in a television series before moving to Bengaluru to be with her daughter. Family sources said the last rites were performed in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Several actors and filmmakers condoled her death.