Malayalam filmmaker Naranipuzha Shanavas dies; Aditi Rao Hydari, Vijay Babu and others mourn

Malayalam director and writer Naranipuzha Shanavas breathed his last on Wednesday (December 23). The filmmaker was admitted to a private hospital in Kochi where he passed away. He was 37. Last week while shooting for his upcoming film Gandhirajan, he suffered a cardiogenic shock and was undergoing treatment at the intensive care unit of KG Hospital in Coimbatore. Later, he was shifted to Aster Medicity in Kochi in a ventilator supported ambulance.

Naranipuzha Shanavas' death has left the entire film industry in shock. Actress Aditi Rao Hydari took to her Instagram to share some precious memories with the filmmaker and mourned the loss. She wrote, "As kind and sensitive as his stories...Rest in Peace Shanavas sir... I Hope your Sufi soul finds a place as beautiful as the one you created for us in Sufiyum Sujathayum. Gone too soon. My Prayers and condolences to the family."

Producer Vijay Babu also shared a picture of the filmmaker on Facebook and penned a heartfelt note in Malayalam. He said, "You have gone, leaving behind a lifetime of memories and a lot of stories you told me. Our Sufi. We tried our best for u shaanu ... love u lots."

Actor Jayasurya, who starred in Naranipuzha Shanavas' film Sufiyum Sujatayum, also paid tribute and shared pictures from the sets.

Naranipuzha Shanavas's last film Sufiyum Sujatayum released on Amazon Prime Video in July this year. It starred Aditi Rao Hydari, Jayasurya and Dev Mohan. It was the first Malayalam film to skip theatrical release and move to OTT.