Celebs pay tribute to Balu Mahendra

Acclaimed cinematographer and director, Balu Mahendra passed away earlier today in a private hospital in Chennai. He was shifted to the hospital today and finally, he succumbed to cardiac arrest. Born in 1939 in Sri Lanka, Balu Mahendra rose to fame as a cinematographer in the 70s and he went on to work on several classics, before turning director.
Some of his most popular films as a director include Moondram Pirai, which was later remade in Hindi as Sadma, Kokila, Nirikshana, Sathi Leelavathi, Moodu Pani among other films.He was also the cinematographer of films like Shankarabharanam, Mullum Malarum, Seetha Koka Chilaka and Manavoori Pandavulu.
Soon after news about his death broke out, scores of celebrities from Telugu, Tamil and Hindi film industries paid their tribute on Twitter. Here���s what they had to say about Balu Mahendra :
���Deeply saddened on the demise of Balu Mahendra.The legacy of his creations Sadma & Moondaram Pirai will live on. My condolences to the family��� - Sridevi
���An inspiration, teacher from a distance, everlasting hero for most of us...The great Balu Mahendra sir has left us. Massive loss! Prayers.��� - Siddharth
���What a loss to cinema - may you rest in peace balu mahendra sir :( ur wonderful words and advice will always stay with me - fly with angels��� - Shruti Haasan
���Dear balumahendra sir. Thank you for enriching us with lovely movies.We Will always cherish your moments of creation. Thank you chief. RIP���- Prakash Raj
���RIP BaluMahendra Sir. Who ignited cinema passion in many of us.��� - KV Anand
���BaluMahendra,A man who inspired many into cinematography n film making passes away with a lot of great works behind to inspire many more!��� - BVS Ravi
���RIP one of the heartawakening directors of the era Balu Mahendra. I could not sleep after I watched Vasantha Kokila for the first time.��� - Anil Sunkara
���Balu Mahendra garu no more.Great cam work in Shankarabharanam, Mana Oori Pandavulu, dir:Nireekshana, Vasantha Kokila, SathiLeelavathi films.RIP��� - Gopimohan
���Saddest day of my life.RIP, my god father, the legendary Balu Mahendra.��� ��� Vijay K Chakravarthi
���#RIP balu mahendra sir ... One of the greatest teacher of indian cinema ...��� - GV Prakash
���RIP Balu Mahendra sir amazing director and brought a different genre and style to our cinema ..��� - Vimala Raman