Actor Shanavas, son of Prem Nazir, passes away at 71

Thiruvananthapuram: Actor Shanavas, son of evergreen hero Prem Nazir of Malayalam cinema, passed away. He was 71 and was undergoing treatment for kidney and heart disease. He passed away at a private hospital in Thiruvananthapuram at around 11.50 pm on Monday. He was staying at ‘Cordon Trinity’ 2B in Vazhuthakkad.

Shanavaz completed his primary education from Chirayinkeezhu English Medium School and Montfort School, Yercaud, and did his Master's in English Literature from New College, Chennai. He became active in acting in 1981 with the film ‘Premageethangal’ directed by Balachandra Menon. He was a busy actor in the 80s. He acted in more than fifty films. He returned in 2011 with the film ‘China Town’ after a break.

‘Maniyara’, ‘Preshnam Gurutharam’, ‘Adhipathyam’, ‘Ivan or Simham’, ‘Milanchi’, ‘Chitram’, etc., were his known films. He last worked in Prithviraj Sukumaran-starred political drama, ‘Jana Gana Mana’. He has acted in some Tamil films as well as several serials.

His last rites are to be carried out on Tuesday afternoon at Palayam Muslim Jaamath Khabarsthan in Thiruvananthapuram.