A day after news of the death of K Rajan (85) broke on social media, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Joseph Vijay posted a condolence note about the veteran producer. He posted a note saying Rajan “boldly expressed his views on the welfare of the film industry, particularly small producers and distributors."
"His contribution will be remembered by the film industry,” the Chief Minister added.
According to a report in The Hindu, K Rajan is said to have drowned to death after he fell into the Adyar river in Chennai on Sunday, May 17. The police said the producer was estranged from his family and had been staying at a private hotel.
The veteran figure produced films like Doubles (2000), Aval Paavam (2000), and Ninaikkatha Naalillai (2001), apart from directing Unarchigal in 2005. He also wrote the films Thangamana Thangachi (1991) and Chinna Poovai Killathe (1992) and directed Namma Ooru Mariamma (1991). He has also acted in a handful of films including the most recently released Thunivu, starring Ajith Kumar. Other publications had reported the death to have been a case of suicide.
His son Prabhukanth had met the press following the news of his death, stating that K Rajan was owed ₹20 crore from various people from the Tamil movie fraternity. He also said that he was aware of these details and that his father had been trying to recover the said amount for a period of two years. Not receiving a response from several people from the fraternity was also noted to be one of the reasons for Rajan’s demise. Prabhukanth asked the media to refrain from reporting wrongly about his father’s death, requesting their support and help in reclaiming the lost amount.