Former Kerala MP and veteran Malayalam actor Innocent died at the age of 75 at a private hospital in Kochi yesterday.
The actor, who was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a type of cancer in 2012, was admitted to a private hospital in the city about a week ago for a cancer relapse after he complained of uneasiness following an infection in his throat.
The actor had been placed under extracorporeal membrane oxygenation support after his condition worsened, according to doctors attending to him. Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a form of cardiopulmonary support where the patient’s blood is pumped and oxygenated outside the body using a machine.
‘Innocent’ has starred in over 750 movies in a career spanning five decades, primarily in Malayalam, and a few in Tamil and Hindi. Known for his roles primarily as a comedian, he served as president of the artistes’ guild, Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes, during 2003-18. He last acted in the Prithviraj Sukumaran, Vivek Oberoi-starer Kaduva (2022).
The actor has played memorable roles in many box office hits which spawned remakes in Tamil and Hindi.