Bengaluru : Kannada actor, politician Ambareesh died in a private hospital in Bengaluru on Saturday evening. He was 66. Ambareesh was known as the ‘Rebel Star’ and had a huge fan following at the peak of his popularity.

He started his career in 1972 with negative roles before becoming a leading man.

Ambareesh was from the Mandya district Karnataka and went on to represent the area in parliament. He had been a central minister under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. He was also an legislator in the state assembly but had been dropped from the ministry in the Congress government that preceded the current coalition government.

Ambareesh had recently mediated in a sexual harassment case in the film industry in which an actress accused actor Arjun Sarja of inappropriate behaviour amid the #MeToo movement.

Crowds immediately began to gather at the private hospital in Bengaluru where he died. Senior politicians and fellow actors also headed to the hospital to pay their respects.