THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Hugely popular theatre director Prasanth Narayanan, who was unwell for a while breathed his last here on Thursday at a state-run hospital.

Narayanan was a multi-faceted personality and was a play write who scripted 25 plays, a kathak artiste and a director.

The 51-year-old Narayanan is best known for directing the play ‘Chayamukhi’, which saw actor Mohanlal and actor turned CPI-M legislator Mukesh acting in it.

He was admitted to the state-run hospital here following breathing problems and he passed away in the afternoon.

Hailing from the capital city's suburbs, the picturesque Vellayani, he began his artistic career Kathakali under C.G. Nampoothiri.

As a teenager he penned his first work and has had no reason to look back as in a career spanning three decades, he won a Sangeetha Nataka Academy award for the best playwright in 2003.