Sarath Babu sir looked handsome both on screen and off it, Mysskin said, adding that he had a kind heart and must have had a beautiful soul.
Sarath Babu.
Following the death of the veteran actor Sarath Babu, various eminent people from the industry have expressed their condolences, and recollected the times spent with the actor.
Renowned actor-director Ramesh Aravind, who has shared the screen with Sarath Babu, told South First that the actor was a towering figure — both literally and metaphorically.
“He had a gentle aura, soothing as a breeze. I can still vividly recall his face, eternally adorned with a genial smile, his eyes reflecting warmth and kindness. His manners were always pleasant, radiating an attitude of genuine care for everyone he encountered,” Ramesh Aravind said.
“Often, he would park his car half a kilometre away from our shoot location and embark on a leisurely walk, allowing him to relish the surrounding beauty and invigorate his body and mind. Such discipline and commitment to health were inspiring,” he recalled.
“One of our unforgettable collaborations was the timeless masterpiece, Amrutavarshini (1997), which holds a revered place in Kannada cinema. Sharing the screen with him in Amruthavarshini is a fond memory,” he said.
Farewell Sarathbabu garu🙏You continue to live… in our fond memories of Amrutavarshini. pic.twitter.com/qdllQeOeqh
— Ramesh Aravind (@Ramesh_aravind) May 22, 2023
Superstar Rajinikanth paid rich tributes to his deceased actor-friend Sarath Babu on Tuesday and recalled the latter’s advice to him to quit smoking, saying the late veteran would even snatch away the stub and put it out if he saw him smoking.
Rajinikanth paying tribute to Sarath Babu. (Screengrab)
Mindful of his friend’s views, he would not smoke in front of Sarath Babu, Rajinikanth said after paying tributes to the mortal remains of the actor in Chennai.
The veteran said he knew Sarath Babu even before becoming an actor and that they were good friends. The late actor was a very good human being, a good friend and always had a smile on his face.
“I have never seen him getting serious or angry. You all know that all the films I acted with him are very big hits — Mullum Malarum, Muthu, Annamalai and Velaikkaran. He had great love and affection for me…he would always regret me smoking and will ask me to quit it for a long life. If he would see me smoking, he would snatch the cigarette and put it out. So, I won’t smoke before him,” Rajinikanth told reporters.
However, indicating that Sarath Babu gave an exception to this, the top star recalled how the former calmed him down by getting a cigarette when an important scene in Annamalai did not materialise as desired.
“In Annamalai, there is this important scene of challenging (Rajinikanth taking on Sarath Babu after their friendship turns sour) and took a lot of retakes as the emotions did not come out properly. He got me a cigarette and after that I felt relaxed and the take was approved. He always advised me about good health but he is no more now,” Rajinikanth reminisced.
A number of Tamil cinema personalities including actors Surya, Karthi and Suhasini paid tributes to Sarath Babu.
Tamil director Mysskin. (Supplied)
Tamil director Mysskin told South First: “For me, Sarath Babu sir is the prime example for the ‘friend’ archetype. He has delivered so many wonderful performances as a friend on screen.
“I would like to thank him for all that. In particular, I am filled with gratitude for that wonderful number called ‘Senthaazhampoovil vandhaadum thendral.'”
Sarath Babu looked handsome both on screen and off it, Mysskin said, adding that he had a kind heart and must have had a beautiful soul.
“Let his soul beautify the heavens!”
Veteran actor Subhalekha Sudhakar told South First that Sarath Babu was a gentle person who treated every person in the film sets equally.
Subhalekha Sudhakar. (Supplied)
“When I worked with him in Sithara in 1984, we were all still budding artists back then. He used to discuss so much about the craft and give suggestions as to how to bring that perfection while acting before the camera. And he never brought his seniority to play into the picture. He treated all of us equally. He was a gentle and refined person. My admiration for me kept growing since then. I had never seen him angry, if he wanted anything to tell anyone, he would do it so jovially, cracking jokes.” he said.
“My relationship with him grew further when SP Sailaja came into my life. He and my wife had been doing back-to-back films, mostly combination roles. Thus, he became much closer to our family in Madras. While many of our contemporaries moved to Hyderabad, we stayed put in Madras,” Sudhakar added.
He said that whenever they met at the airport during the travel between Hyderabad and Madras, Sarath Babu often told him they should meet frequently.
“We should meet frequently, even though we’re in the same city we’re not getting time to meet each other,” he used to tell Sudhakar.
“Recalling those moments, it appears as though we’re running behind mundane things, there’s nothing more satisfying than meeting a warm friend. The last time I bade him goodbye was during the shooting of Vakeel Saab two years ago. We had no combination sequences in the film. It so happened that he just finished his dubbing and I was entering the studio to dub my voice in Hyderabad,” he said.
“He stood and said hello, I told him that I was staying for two more days in the city to attend a small work and I bade him goodbye as he was supposed to catch a flight to Chennai that evening. That’s the last sight interaction I had with Sarath Babu,” Sudhakar added.
Veteran actor Jayasudha said she knew Sarath Babu as a soft-natured and disciplined person.
Jayasudha. (Supplied)
“He is a quiet person and equally serious when it comes to delivering the goods on the film sets. I knew him as a man of a few words. He initially appeared in supporting roles later we happened to share screen space as lead pairs. Whenever we get on to the sets, he would first discuss the scene and says the conversation should be as realistic as real life,” Jayasudha told South First.
“A soft-natured and disciplined person, I remember Sarath Babu as a polite gentleman who would mind his duty and he’d never speak ill about others,” she added.
“He was quite popular in Tamil and Kannada even during his heydays. He also acted in the film Kanchana Sitha which was bankrolled by our production house. And I had the honour to share screen space with him in his last film Malli Pelli starring VK Naresh and Pavitra Lokesh. We made guest appearances in it,” she recalled.
“No one expected this, death is this uncertain. Whenever we meet, he used to recall the golden days of Telugu cinema,” she added.
In his words, she said, “Those times were far different from what we are now.”
(This story has been edited with additional inputs)
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