Thiruvananthapuram, March 7 (DHNS): Kalabhavan Mani (45), the national award-winning Malayalam actor and one of Kerala’s most popular exports to cinema in other south Indian languages, died in Kochi on Sunday.

He was under treatment for liver-related ailments and his death was reported at a private hospital around 7:15 pm. The actor was admitted in the hospital two days ago.

Mani, who had a phenomenal rise as a comic actor from mid-1990s, later moved on to negative and more serious characters before making a mark as leading man. He often spoke about his struggles and years of poverty as a youngster — he was also an auto-rickshaw driver in his hometown Chalakudy in Thrissur district — and was celebrated in Kerala’s popular culture as a warm, earthy person without starry airs.

He won a special jury award at the 2000 National Film Awards for his performance as a visually challenged man in Vasanthiyum Lakshmiyum Pinne Njaanum (1999). He was a star villain in Tamil and Telugu films, with popular performances in films including Gemini (2002) with Vikram and a cameo with Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai in Shankar’s Endhiran (2010).