The government of Tamil Nadu on Saturday ordered that actor Vivek be cremated with full state honours. Padmashri Vivek, also known as ‘Chinna Kalaivaanar’, passed away early on Saturday after brief hospitalisation. In a statement, the state government said that in an attempt to appreciate and honour his contributions to art and social work, it has been ordered to accord police honours during the actor’s cremation.
It is understood that the state government received the go-ahead from the Election Commission of India (ECI) to provide state honours to Vivek since the Model Code of Conduct is still in force in Tamil Nadu in view of the Assembly elections. In September 2020, playback singer SP Balasubrahmanyam was accorded state honours while he was cremated at his residence in Thamaraipakkam in Thiruvallur district.
Actor Vivek passed away in the early hours of Saturday after he was hospitalised for a cardiac issue on Friday. He was rushed to the SIMS hospital in Chennai after he fell unconscious at his residence in Saligramam. The doctors in the hospital told the media on Friday evening that the actor had a 100% block in LAD (an artery that is connected to the heart) and had undergone Emergency Coronary Angiogram followed by angioplasty.
The doctors had also put Vivek on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) and had told the media that the actor will continue to be under critical care for the next 24 hours. However, Vivek succumbed at 4.35 am on Saturday.
Following his death, several actors, musicians and fans have been paying tributes to the actor in person and through social media. Actors including Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Mohanlal, Suhasini, Khushboo, Kasturi Shankar, Vadivelu, Mayilsamy, Soori, Manobala and Senthil expressed their shock and grief at the sudden death of Vivek. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and DMK Chief MK Stalin also expressed their condolences on the actor’s death and spoke about how socially conscious and active he was during his lifetime.
Musicians D Imman, Devi Sri Prasad and others paid their tributes on social media while thousands of his fans fondly remembered the indelible mark Vivek had left in their lives through his thought-provoking comedy.