Mollywood mourns demise of veteran actor KPAC Lalitha

Tributes poured in for one of Malayalam's finest actors, KPAC Lalitha who died Tuesday night.

"I have lost a very very dear person," penned Mammootty.

Manju Warrier remembers her motherly love. "Even though I called her chechi (elder sister), in my heart she was a mother," said Manju.

"Memories of acting together are few and far between. But she held me closer with a loving smile.

"Our last film together was 'Mohanlal'. She was a torchbearer. She loved like a mother and taught like a teacher. Adios, artist par excellence," said Manju.

"She was like an elder sister to all those in the Malayalam film field. I had a close acquaintance with Lalitha chechi from the time of being an assistant director," said Kamal.

"She proved in her decades-long career that she was an unavoidable presence in Malayalam cinema. Her contribution to our cinema was immense. She did memorable roles in scores of films like the ones portrayed in Godfather, Vengalam, Spadikam and Vietnam Colony. She used to portray characters with ease," he added.

Veteran director Fazil said that there are no replacements for those talented people who leave us forever. "But in the case of Lalitha chechi it is literally true. Let her soul rest in peace," he said.

"I had the opportunity to watch her acting by standing at close quarters on many film sets. It is a personal loss for me. She travelled with many generations of Malayalis through her memorable characters. Malayalis loved her as one of the sisters in their families. Lalitha "Chechi" could have acted in many more roles. There is no replacement for her," director Siby Malayil said.