Sivaji Ganesan’s eldest daughter passes away

CHENNAI: Legendary actor Sivaji Ganesan’s daughter Shanthi Narayanasamy passed away on Sunday after a brief illness. She was 71.

Shanthi is survived by her siblings — film producer Ramkumar, actor Prabhu and sister Thenmozhi. She was the firstborn of the late thespian and his wife Kamala Ganesan.

Shanthi breathed her last in the city after experiencing health-related complications over the past few days, family sources said.

Though she largely stayed out of the limelight compared to her brothers, Shanthi shared a deep connection to Tamil cinema history.

Her father, who also owned a cinema theatre, named it after her—Shanti Theatre—in the 1960s, and it became a popular landmark on the arterial Anna Salai. Shanti Theatre was demolished years ago, and the property was redeveloped into an office complex.

She also made her mark in the industry behind the scenes, notably producing her father’s 1974 blockbuster film ‘Thangapathakkam’.