Velu Prabhakaran, a Tamil filmmaker, cinematographer, and actor, died Friday at a private hospital in Chennai. He was 68. On Thursday, the Kollywood veteran's team announced that he remained in serious condition and under constant medical observation in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

On Thursday night, Velu’s team confirmed that the filmmaker-actor was in a critical condition, in a post on X (formerly Twitter), "Director Velu Prabhakaran has been in a critical condition since this morning. He remains under close medical supervision, and while he is still breathing, doctors have stated that his condition is extremely serious and requires continuous monitoring."

On Friday morning, an industry tracker verified his death, stating, "Veteran Tamil Filmmaker, the controversial #VeluPrabhakaran (68) passed away in Chennai due to health issues. Prabhakaran was known for his socially provocative films such as Nalaya Manithan, Kadavul, Kadhal Kadhai, where he explored themes like atheism, caste & sexuality." Velu's relatives also confirmed to India Today that he died after a protracted illness.