The passing away of yesteryear's Tamil superstar Gemini Ganesan has shocked his fans and industry veterans. Comedienne Manorama, whose association with Ganesan goes back decades, pays tribute to the legend.

I met Kamala (Dr Kamala Selvaraj) at the wedding of (music director) Ilayaraja's son, Yuvan, yesterday, in a lift. I asked her how her father was. She said he was not keeping well. I told her immediately that I would come over to see him the next day.

The first news I heard when I got up this morning was about Gemini passing away. I have never felt so bad in my life. I was planning to meet him the first thing in the morning. I did go in the morning, but to see his dead body. Kamala also felt very bad when she saw me in the morning. She had told him that I would be calling on him.

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I just came back from there. Though I wanted to be with him till his body was taken to the crematorium, I had to come home as I was not feeling very good. I find it difficult to stand for a long time these days.

The first time I met Gemini Ganesan was in Madurai [Images], long, long ago. I had not started acting in films then. I was in Madurai as the heroine of a play, Mani Makudam, written by (former chief minister) Kalaignar Karunanidhi. I was staying in a hotel there. I came to know that on the occasion of the silver jubilee of the film Kanavane kankanda deivam, Gemini, Anjali Devi and many others had come to Madurai.

I was a great fan of Anjali Devi, so I told the play director SS Rajendran to take me to meet her. He did. He also introduced me to Gemini Ganesan. Gemini spoke to me for a while and wished me well. Though it happened many years ago, I still remember that he looked extremely handsome.

Later on, I joined films and started acting as a comedienne. I think the first film we acted together in was Meendum Swargam. He was the hero and I was only a comedienne. Once he happened to see a play of mine in which I was acting as the heroine. After the play, he told me, 'Manorama, you act so well. Why are you not a heroine in films?' I can never forget those words. He was at his peak then with lots and lots of doting fans. Yet, he was so down to earth and appreciative of others.

He was also a very friendly and jovial person. He was so energetic that he would not sit in one place; he was always running around.

He loved talking on the phone. Wherever there is a phone, he would be chatting constantly. If he is not seen on the sets, you had to only look for the telephone -- he would be near that! That was the joke on the sets in those days.

Like the Moovendargal, the three kings of Tamil Nadu -- Cholas, Cheras and Pandyas -- Makkal Thilagam MGR, Natigar Thilagam Sivaji Ganesan [Images] and Kadal Mannan Gemini Ganesan were the Moovendargal of the Tamil film industry. He was the only one left. Now he is also gone. I don't think we will ever see such personalities again. Great artistes like Sivaji and Gemini never die. They live forever.

As told to Shobha Warrier