Kerala to foot ailing actor Thilakan`s medical bills

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala will take care of the medical bills of veteran Malayalam actor Thilakan, 74, who in a critical condition after suffering two heart attacks, Health Minister V.S. Sivakumar said Sunday.

Thilakan suffered the heart attacks Saturday. He has been admitted to a private hospital here and is on the ventilator. "The chief minister (Oommen Chandy) has cleared this decision. I met the doctors and they have told me that he continues to be on ventilator but his overall health condition has shown a slight improvement, but still he is not out of danger," said Sivakumar, who visited Thilakan here. The 74-year-old actor from Kerala has been part of nearly 300 films, most of them in Malayalam. Superstar Suresh Gopi is hopeful and said: "I feel, he (Thilakan) will be soon acting again. When he saw me, I could see tears trickling down his cheeks and this is a good sign because he is expressing himself. We should all extend our prayers to him." Beginning his career in the 1950s through the theatre movement, he did his first film ‘Ulkadal’ in in 1979. In his over three decade film career, he has featured in about 300 films. His latest film, ‘Ustad Hotel’, is currently running in theatres. The actor was in news for taking on the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes, leading to his ouster in 2010. IANS