'Sita Ramam' art director Sunil Babu dies at 50
What's the story
Popular art director Sunil Babu passed away at the age of 50. He reportedly suffered a cardiac arrest on Thursday (January 6). According to reports, he was admitted to the hospital three days back due to swelling in his leg. Babu worked in Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi film industries. He had done the art direction of Dulquer Salmaan-starrer Sita Ramam.
Career
Babu's career at glance
Babu entered the film industry as an assistant art director to Sabu Cyril. He went on to work in many films including Ghajini, Thuppakki, Maharshi, Oopiri, Bheeshma Parvam, Premam, and Chota Mumbai. The late art director was reportedly in the news for superstar Thalapathy Vijay's upcoming film, Varisu. The news of his sudden demise has sent shock waves across showbiz.
Bollywood connection
His work in Bollywood and Hollywood
Apart from working in South Indian cinema, Babu also worked on various popular Bollywood films. He has done the art direction for films such as Singh is Kinng, MS Dhoni: The Untold Story, Paa, Lakshya, and Special 26, among many others. Other than Bollywood, Babu had also reportedly worked in Hollywood and had done the art direction for the film Rose.
Dulquer Salmaan's reaction
Heart hurts, said Salmaan
Actor Dulquer Salmaan, who worked with Babu on Bangalore Days and Sita Ramam, paid tribute to him on social media. "Heart hurts. The kindest warmest soul who quietly went about his work with so much passion and made no noise about his immense talent. Suniletta thank you for the memories," wrote Salmaan in a post, sharing Babu's picture.
Tributes
Tributes poured in from the fraternity
From Malayalam filmmaker Anjali Menon to Sita Ramam director Hanu Raghavapudi, many from the industry paid tribute to the late art director. "Utterly shocked to hear of Sunil Babu's demise," wrote Menon in a social media post for Babu. Bollywood actor Mrunal Thakur, who also worked with Babu, shared the news of his demise on her Instagram Stories.
Twitter Post
'Sita Ramam' director shared picture with Babu
This is really heartbreaking and hard to digest! Can't believe he's no longer with us now. This shows, again, how life can be unfair and unpredictable. Rest in peace, #SunilBabu sir. The world will miss you. pic.twitter.com/lEeZg1Ps0l
— Hanu Raghavapudi (@hanurpudi) January 6, 2023