Tamil comedian Nellai Siva passes away aged 69 after cardiac arrest

Tamil actor Nellai Siva, who is known for his amazing comic timing, is no more. He passed away following a heart attack on Tuesday, 11 May at his residence in Tirunelveli. He was 69. Born on 16 January, 1952 at Veppilankulam, a small village in the Nellai district, he was inspired by actor Sivaji Ganesan in his childhood. He later moved to Chennai to try his luck in films. Fans and colleagues are mourning his demise and writing heartfelt obituaries on social media. Remembering Siva, actor Krishna wrote on Twitter, “One of the nicest actors I had the privilege to work with. He always telling us jokes and entertaining the crew. May his soul rest in peace ayya”. Actor-director Radhakrishnan Parthiban posted an interview of Siva and wrote that he had a special bond with the late actor. In the interview, Siva recalled that he had received Rs 10,000 for the film Ivan. At that time, he did not have a bank account. It was Parthiban who called up the bank manager and helped Siva to open a bank account. Siva started his acting journey in 1985 with the Pandiarajan directorial Aan Paavam. After that, he starred in hit films like Mahaprabhu, Vetri Kodi Kattu, Anbe Sivam, Thirupaachi, Kannum Kannum, Saamy, Kireedam among others. He acted in over 500 films in his career spanning three decades. After an illustrious career in films, he switched to TV and acted in many popular serials like Pandiyan Stores and Mama Mapillai. Siva was last seen in Paramapadham Vilayattu starring Trisha. It was released on Disney Plus Hotstar last month.