Chennai |Well-known Tamil actor-director, G Marimuthu, died here on Friday following cardiac arrest, the South Indian Artists Association said. Condolences poured in for the 57-year-old actor.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, his son Udhayanidhi and superstar Rajinikanth among others mourned Marimuthu's death.

"Director and actor G Marimuthu passed away this morning due to cardiac arrest in a private hospital," Nadigar Sangam (South Indian Artists Association) said in a social media post.

He reportedly fell uneasy while dubbing for a Tamil TV serial and was rushed to a hospital.

Marimuthu has directed two films--'Kannum Kannum' and 'Pulivaal,' starring well-known actor Prasanna in both movies.

In a statement, Chief Minister Stalin expressed grief over the actor's death and recalled he had appeared in over 50 movies and was appreciated for his natural acting.

"In many interviews and events, his opinions against superstitions had created public awareness," the CM said. Marimuthu's demise was a "big loss" to the cinema industry, he added.

Top star Rajinikanth described the deceased actor-director as a "nice human being" and expressed shock over his death.

"Deeply shattered to know the passing away of director G Marimuthu. We did #KannumKannum and #Pulivaal together. We had a brothers like bond. We agreed to disagree on many. His life wasn't easy at all. As an actor finally he was doing very well. He shud've been there for a while longer. Sad. Rip," actor Prasanna said on a post in X.

Marimuthu had of late taken to acting and was seen in a number of movies and tele-serials.

Sun Pictures, actors Radhikaa Sarathkumar, M Sasikumar and Arun Vijay among others condoled his death.